Complex Love
by SecretBlackMagic
Summary: "I love you...I always have. Even when everyone else shunned you, I loved you." "I'm sorry but...my heart belongs to another." / "Just let me protect you Yuki-kun!" "Why?" "Because you stole my heart and I just can't stand by while you run away with it!"
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: Silver Lining **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ao No Exorcist or Kazue Kato's characters. **

"Kyah~ Yukio-kun is so amazing!" "He got top marks in the entire first year class!" "He's so tall and handsome too!" "Yukio Okumura is so dreaaaa~my!"

There was a group of girls already swooning over the boy and classes hadn't even started yet.

"E-Excuse me. Can I get pass, p-please?"

The four girls turned around with a glare. There stood a shy looking girl, her head bowed and nervously swirling her foot around. The leader of the group, a loud brunette, sneered at her, "And what makes you think we've got to go? Just buzz off."

She gave the shy girl a shove, making her stumble backwards. Luckily someone was just passing by and caught her before she could fall.

The group of girls shrieked, "Ewwwww! She touched it! Let's hurry up and go before she spreads it to us!" They tore off down the hall, leaving the two alone.

Fixing her glasses, the girl looked at her savior with a blush, "A-Ah...T-Thank you...uhm...?"

He smiled, "I'm Rin...Rin Okumura. You?"

"M...Mizuki. Hirabayashi Mizuki. I thank you greatly. I am in your debt."

Mizuki stood up from Rin's arms, blush faintly there. He grinned anyways, sheepishly rubbing his head, "Don't mention it. I was just walking by anyways. Those girls were trying to bully you right?"

Mizuki just nodded, the light catching her glasses so he couldn't really see her eyes. Even if he could her bangs covered the tops of them. Rin laughed, if his brother Yukio was a girl she would surely be it.

Her hair was pitch black and long, pulled up into twin ponytails with decorative hair ties. He couldn't tell what her eyes looked like behind the glasses yet so the color was a mystery. She wasn't too short yet not really tall. And her arms were a bit little yet her thighs were a bit big.

"Class is about to start so I should get going. I-I'll make sure to repay you. See you around, Okumura-san."

Mizuki waved and then turned around to head into the classroom. But Rin was so stubborn and stopped her, "Wait! You take advanced classes right? If you are you should see my twin brother Yukio. When you do tell him you know me and I bet he'd take you to me."

She merely nodded and he was off in a flash. Heading straight to her seat, Mizuki hung her head to sigh, "I don't even know who this Yukio person is. Or if I even have a class with him."

Suddenly the bell rang and the teacher walked in. He cleared his throat and shuffled his papers, "Good morning class. Today is the day you fine young men and women start your high school careers. And I shall be working with you your first year here. I am your home room teacher Mr. Takashi. Any questions?"

One girl raised her hand, "Are we all students who take advanced classes in this home room? It's pretty small."

Mr. Takashi laughed, "I suppose you're right. You lot are all taking advanced classes. There is only 15 of you in here. And you guys already have a student class president!"

**((Mizuki's POV)) **

He smiled sweetly while I felt my stomach drop before fluttering vigorously, my throat beginning to close up. My breaths were beginning to come in faster, the boy next to me eyed me from the side. I squeezed my eyes shut, 'Oh man I hate getting put on the spot like this! Oh geez please don't make me so say a speech or something! I feel like I'm about to puke...

"Hirabayashi Mizuki. Please greet your student peers."

It felt as if I were going to pee on myself so I squeezed the feeling away. I stood on shaky legs, wobbly walking to the front and nearly tripping to fall, slipping on air. Luckily I grabbed the edge of a desk, but not so luckily the class erupted into chuckles.

"Awwwnnnn our president is such a cute little klutz!"

A blush erupted across my cheeks and I smoothed out my skirt. I stood up in front the board behind the little podium, clearing my throat. I made sure I was in the sun from the open windows enough to cast a glare over my glasses.

I didn't want my peers to look me in the eyes nor me to them so I looked at the tops of their heads. It was close enough, "I-I-I...am the first year president, H-Hi-Hira-Hirabayashi M-Mizuki. I-It is a great h-hon-honor to be with you all. A-And I-I-I will d-do my best!"

I finished with a shy smile and I could've sworn if my voice was any softer they wouldn't have been able to hear me. That's when I got a few comments, "Does she have a stuttering problem?" "Awwnnn she's nervous!" "Hirabayashi-san's voice is so cute."

Mr. Takashi clapped a hand on my shoulder, "It's alright, Hirabayashi-chan. You can return to your seat now."

Instead of returning to my seat I looked up at him, lips trembling and cheeks flushed, "Actually...M-May I b-be excused to the rest-restroom?"

My voice squeaked towards the end and he laughed before giving me a lamented hall pass, "Of course. And when you're finished, would you mind picking up some worksheet copies from the copy room? Thank you."

I nodded before dashing out of the room, thankful for the escape. The restrooms were at the end of the long hallway. After I had finally relieved myself of my embarrassment and washed my hands, I was walking to the copier room.

As I made my way down the steps I heard some angry whispering and a few kicks towards a wall. I peeked my head over the edge of the stairwell, surprised by what I saw. It was Rin, angrily kicking the wall and muttering to himself.

Tentatively making my way down the steps I moved over to his side, tapping his shoulder, "Rin...whoa!"

Dropping down to a crouch within a second, I narrowly missed the arm that swung backwards on reflex. The boy looked down at me in surprise, "Ah! Mizuki! I'm sorry! It's just that you snuck up on me and my nerves are a bit on edge. But cool move on dodging that. You're reflexes are amazing."

I nodded once before fixing my glasses, "It's quite alright, Okumura-kun."

He reached out with his hand but I stood up on my own, dusting off nonexistent dirt from my clothes. Clasping my hands together loosely in front of my womb I gazed around him, "Why are you here and kicking the poor wall?"

He seemed to smile in embarrassment, scratching at his cheek as he averted his eyes, "Um, well, er, uhhh...Ya see."

Suddenly he turned to me with hard eyes, his hands encasing mines completely. He leaned in more close than needed, "This school is way to big and I got lost on my way to class so could you PPPLLLLEEAAASSEE help me get there?! This will be you paying your debt to me, Mizuki. I'm already seven minutes late!"

I could only stare back at him for a moment in shock, my eyes wide even though he couldn't see. How could he not know that all first year home room classes were up one floor? Did he not pay attention during the campus tour?

I quickly dismissed the thought, giving him a tiny, closed-lipped smile, "Sure. But I am on my way to the copier room so you must accompany me. It isn't far away."

Now it was Rin's turn to stare wide eyed. His finger came up to point at my face, "Hey...you didn't stutter that time. You must be comfortable we me now or something!"

I stiffened. I most certainly did not stutter that time...maybe I was comfortable. It wouldn't be so surprising since he gave off such a cozy aura. Shrugging it off, I brushed away his hands before walking through the stairwell doors.

After we had collected the papers, I scanned his schedule and told him about how he could get to a lot of his classes. Since I didn't want him to get into too much trouble I excused him from being late with his teacher, "E-Excuse Okumura Rin, sensei. He was h-helping me c-ca-carry important papers. I-I am the first year president, H-Hira-Hirabayashi Mizuki."

The teacher gave a stiff nod before going on with the lesson. Rin nudged me a bit, "Thanks. I so totally owe you a bunch now."

I gave a hum of approval before taking the papers back to my home room. The stack was pretty heavy so I struggled with opening the door using my elbow. It bounced open abruptly and since I was leaning heavily on it, I nearly fell to the floor.

Quickly, I regained my footing, the stack of papers threatening to slip from my fingers. Mr. Takashi chuckled as he plucked the papers from my hands, "Thank you, Hirabayashi-chan. Next time I'll send a helper with you. Was it too heavy?"

Thankful to have the weight gone, I nodded, "Mm. I-I didn't think I-I was going to m-make it."

He sorted through the papers before setting them down on his desk. I took that as my cue to go back to my seat. Once I was the there the boy who was eyeing me earlier leaned over to whisper, "I can be your helper if you'd like Hirabayashi-san."

He smiled and I stared at his bright face. Dark blonde hair pulled into a low braid and dark brown eyes. His hand jutted out towards me, "My name is Ibuko Benkei. But you can just call me Benkei-kun. Nice to meet you."

I shook his hand gently, "T-Thank you for the offer B-Benkei-kun. I sh-shall remember t-that next time."

I smiled as he let go of my hand and I turned back to the front where Mr. Takashi was explaining the basic rules and the reasons for the papers. Engrossing myself in that, I played the rule of the perfect student and listened.

**((Time Skip)) **

I was standing outside the double doors, looking in uncomfortably. Lots of people grouped together as friends wandered around. The loud buzz of chattering and laughing filled my ears, making me cringed and turn away. That place was not meant for me. Not at all.

Suddenly a hand landed on my shoulder, "Hey! Hirabayashi-san! Wanna come eat lunch with me and my friends for today?"

I let out a breath before looking back at Benkei, a smile on his lips, "S-S-Sorry but I c-can't. I'm too n-nerv-nervous around-around others."

It was true. The outside world was a scary thing and adolescence were scary too. But the blonde just shook his head, "Nonsense. You shouldn't let that bother you. Besides, I'm here with you and these guys are awesome."

I couldn't really run away if I tried because he had swiveled me around an stirred me towards a table near the left end of the room. He was chattering away the entire time while I was literally trying not to have a panic attack in the middle of the dining hall.

"Say hey to my friends. You guys, she's the first year president!"

My eyes nearly rolled back in my head as I gazed at the four faces at the table. It was the same four girls who had given me dirty looks this morning. Now the four of them had forced smiles, "Hello President-san! Were sorry for this morning!"

I calmed down after a moment and just disregarded the act, "I-It is f-fine. Y-Yo-You were only j-jok-joking anywa-ways. Right?"

I gave a warm smile and they looked down with guilt, the brunette pushed her sweet bread over to me, bowing her head, "Forgive me dear President-san. I didn't know you were our president. I am Sango Kawaguchi."

The girl next to Sango blushed, looking down with her curly pink hair covering her face, "My name is Momoe Shido."

Her voice was so soft and high like a small child and so was her figure. She was definitely moe. Across from her sat a stubborn looking girl with striking red hair and deep green eyes, "Name's Ryouko Himura. Pleasure to meet you"

"I'm Umi Tachibana. Won't you tell us your name?"

Umi had striking orange eyes and glossy purple hair. A smirk played on her lips and she set her head in her hand. Her voice was lazy and womanly, my voice sounding all the more childlike, "I-I am Mizuki H-Hira-Hirabayashi. It is n-nice to meet y-you all."

I internally reprimanded myself. I stutter the same way when I say my last name. It was so embarrassing. Sango chuckled and pointed to the open seat, "Go ahead and sit and eat. I have you my sweet roll for Pete's sake!"

Taking her word, I cautiously sat down as if scared to break the sturdy wooden chair. I opened the package and watched as they carried on in conversation, munching on the bread. It was actually quite good.

"Miiiiizuuuuuukiiii-chaaaaaannn!"

My heart instantly took off like a race horse. Who dared to call my name out like that? It was putting me on the spot again and I was already gonna wet myself earlier. I glanced around and a few other girls...and boys, named Mizuki turned around at the yell. But there he stood in all his boisterous glory, Rin Okumura. He seemed to be dragging someone along by the arm, the person continuously holding his glasses to his face. He was a bit taller than Rin and had a similar hairstyle.

My heart swooned a bit when the two stopped a bit from me. I stood up, sweet roll forgotten on the table. I titled my head at Rin, "W-Why are y-you dragging t-this po-poor guy around?! That is-isn't nice Okumura-san."

I pouted a bit but the teen just laughed, "Mizuki this is my younger twin brother, Yukio. I was just telling him that you just look like the gender bend of each other. Hell! You could be OUR twin!"

I blushed deep at the thought before stopping to stare at Yukio. That face looks familiar...it was the face of the youngest exorcist! Yukio Okumura!

Just as I opened my mouth to speak the four girls behind me sighed in unison, "Okumura Yukioooo~..."

At the sound of his name, Yukio stood up before looking down at me. He gave a tiny smile, "Hi, there. Rin was only a tad bit right this time. It's nice to meet you, Hirabayashi-san. We share home room together."

His face was thrown sideways and the edges of the room turned black. It took me a moment to realize I was fainting. I had just greeted a totally cute boy with glasses let alone THE Yukio Okumura! Plus my panic attack had came back full force.

'_My cloud had a silver lining...'_

**((A/N)): Well this is my OC Mizuki Hirbayashi. The only reason I didn't mention her eye color is because I have two different options and couldn't decide. But she really does wear glasses. And she gets super nervous around others, hence half the reason she fainted. The other is because she finds glasses attractive so, Yukio is just her fantasy. Anyways, I'd like to know how I did please! Reviews are welcome. **

**~SecretBlackMagic~ has signed out**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: Three Little Exorcists**

I'll take one bowl of vegetable noodles and a can of peach juice." "¥500 please."

I handed over the money before taking my food, walking to an outside table. As I said my thanks and began to slurp my noodles politely I thought of this weeks events.

On the first day of school I made six friends. The oh so boisterous Rin Okumura, Benkei, Sango, Momoe, Ryouko and Umi. Plus I had gotten to at least see Yukio-kun before I had fainted. When I had awakened I was in the infirmary and the school day was nearly over.

I was so embarrassed that I didn't show my face for the rest of the day. It didn't help that my roommates were a group of Chatty Kathies. So I spent my afternoons after school just walking around town or training.

Speaking of which, I was kind of a bit slow on time. My noodles were almost gone so I slurped the last bunch, throwing the bowl away. Snatching up my drink, I tossed my shoulder up onto my shoulder and began to the trek back to the wooded area.

It was void of human noises, only nature speaking freely here. The sounds calmed me and I sighed in bliss, "Why does it always feel so good to be out here alone?"

Of course nobody would answer my question. I set down my school bag and drink to have my hands free. I slid my skirt up a bit to reveal the summoning circle on my left thigh. My eyes closed in concentration, " Hear my call, dear pet. I order thee to my aide, Bakeneko!"

A piercing white light erupted from the circle and a deep purr was heard. From within my leg, my familiar sprouted, a little silver cat with slanted pink eyes and a jewel wedged between it's eyes. Bakeneko bowed his head, tail swishing around, "How may I be of assistance?"

I looked down with a smirk, "Fight me."

Upon those words his tail swished faster, then he began to shape shift into a giant monster. I smirked, throwing off my school skirt, shirt and tie. Underneath I wore spandex shorts and a sports bra along with my knee high socks and short boots. It wasn't dress code but I'd rather wear these under my school uniform on the days I knew I'd be training out here.

My right hand rested upon left shoulder, off to the side of my collarbone lay another summoning circle. "Aide me in fight: Te no ken!"

A bright pink light erupted from the circle and the hilt sprouted out slowly. I grabbed it before yanking it out completely, turning to face my familiar. It was a long sword with a jagged edge. Along the smooth edge were two oval holes, which I could put my fingers through to use with two hands.

Bakeneko came lunged at me, and I had no time to dodge so I blocked it, slipping my finger into the holes and holding it. We clanged before I pushed him off and jumping forward with a counterattack. The cat, now transformed into giant monster cat, lunged back. His giant paw stretched out fast, claws extracted.

Digging the sword into the ground, I used it as a pole and propelled a kick towards his face. My foot was caught between his lips and careful not to crush it. I jabbed the hilt of my sword into his forehead and I began to fall, careful to regain my balance.

During the fall my glasses had fell off and were accidentally crushed under Bakeneko's foot. The demon cat paused, "Sorry, Master."

I shrugged it off, "No worries. I have a spare."

We continued back into practice, dodging each other's attacks. After working a good sweat we stopped, I was panting pretty hard. "Disperse: Te no ken!"

The seal glowed pink again and my sword swirled away into it. Reaching down next to my clothes, I grabbed my can of peach juice, cracking it open to drink.

"Master someone is approaching...And may I have a sip?"

I tilted the can downwards, smiling at the demon cat, "Sure, Bakeneko."

I kneeled down and tilted the can to let the juice pour into the cat's mouth. The purr was cute and made me giggle.

"Isn't that cute. And exorcist relaxing with her familiar."

We both turned our heads to gaze at the woman leaning against a tree, her own can in her hand. She was pretty busty and wearing flashy clothes. I sighed, "What is it now Shura?"

She smiled, "Nyaaaa~? Why so straightforward? I thought you'd at least ask how I was doing."

I shook my head, standing up and stretching my back, "Not today. But did you come to get me for a meeting or something?"

Shura giggled, draining the rest of her can, "Yuuuup! Get dressed or else they'll think of you as a floozie. It'll just be short."

Groaning I set down the can and picked up my clothes, yanking them on quickly. After I tied the now around my neck, I grabbed my school bag and pulled out the extra pair I glasses. Her hand stopped me right before I slid them on.

"Why do you always seem to be such a badass when you're fighting? It's like these glasses control you or something."

Shrugging her hand away, I pushed my glasses further up my nose, "Fighting is only for the strong so I can only be strong. There is no room for the weak and uncertain there."

Shura laughed loudly, "Lemme guess, once you do anything that isn't fighting you'll shrivel up and be big ass wimp again?"

An angry blush flooded my cheeks and I glare at her, "S-Shu-Shut up, Shura! You should k-know what happens s-since you h-helped m-me!"

The immature adult waved me off before turning away with a sway of her hips, "Soooooo but c'mon kid! We gotta get there on time. Plus somewhere else too."

She began to run away leaving me behind. With a sigh I picked up the can and followed her.

**((After the meeting))**

We had ended up getting there a bit late anyway. Especially since I had to grab my exorcist coat.

The meeting wasn't a super important one, only to tell us about the new procedures going on this year. What piqued my interest was that Yukio was there and I actually smiled at him. But he wasn't paying attention so I sat near Shura.

The room was arranged in sections according to rank. I myself was an Upper 2nd Class while Shura was an Upper 1st class. I noticed Yukio was a Middle 1st Class...and failed to notice me again.

Outside the sky was starting to get darker, signaling evening. Shura clapped a hand on my shoulder, "Mizuki I think you still owe me after the last bet we had. But! Let's wait until after we visit the shop."

I sighed and trailed along behind her. Once we had arrived at the shop she yawned as stretched. Turning her on her heel she jutted a thumb up at the place,"Hey! Remember how I met you here and then you started crying because you couldn't go in? Huuuuuuhhhh Mizu-Mizu?"

I looked away, "W-Well now I-I'm an exorcist. A h-high ranked one a-at that. W-What is that you need anyways?"

The red headed woman lazily stepped forward, scratching her ear with her pinky, "I need more holy water and herbs. But you need supplies too right?"

I nodded. Recently I had used up my special smoke powder and holy water bomb. Plus a sleeping agent used in many demon warding potions. After climbing the doors and entering the shop, we were greeted happily.

I politely greeted the elder woman and we talked business for a while. She came went around to get our supplies from the back while I browsed the front shelves. Upon wandering I found a peculiar bottle shaped like a barrel. The label was smudged so I took it to the counter.

"E-Excuse me Mrs. M-Mor-Moriyama. What's t-this bottle full of?"

The woman looked up, cigarette hanging between her lips as she stared at it. After a moment she looked away, "Sweetheart that's junk. But if ya want it then you can take it with you."

I smiled at her, "Thanks."

Shura and I paid for our supplies before taking the bags. I waved goodbye and we were well on our way back to town. I was secretly hoping she wouldn't remember I had to buy her beer.

"Ne, Mizu-Mizuuuuu I'm a bit thirsty. Aren't you too?"

I sent a glare her way as she smirked at me before laughing. She dragged me to the liquor store and made me pay for an entire twelve pack of beer. Under one arm she carried her beer and with her free hand she held a can, drinking some.

A crease was forming between my thin eyebrows. My glasses were slipped down my face and I struggled to push them back up since I was carrying both our stuff. Being around her was kind of a chore but when she wasn't annoying it was relaxing

Suddenly a can of beer appeared in my face, "Here. Drink some Mizu-Mizu. You're getting that ugly worried face."

I blanched, "B-B-But! S-Shura I can't drink!"

Her face showed no signs of persuasion and she grabbed my cheeks to force my mouth open. Using the other hand she tipped the content into my mouth and made me swallow. It tasted awful but oddly a bit satisfying.

A smirk played on the young woman's face,"Loosen up with me. It's a Friday and only 7pm. Quit being lame."

**(Narrator POV)**

Mizuki stood there, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. She was a student class president, a elite exorcist, yet...She was also a teenager who needed to have fun every once in a while. Conveniently the two were near the edge of some pavement on a darker street, and the ledge of the pavement over looked a shallow little body of water.

Mizuki set down the bags as Shura cracked open a can and handed it to her. The two females sat side by side in comfortable silence, sipping on beers. The sun was just now beginning to set, darker yellows and bright oranges streaking the sky.

The high school student tilted her head with a smile, "The sky looks like your hair, Shu-Shu..."

Said woman giggled, "Wowwwww~! Beer really does loosen you up huh? Where'd that nickname come from, Mizu-Mizu?"

The black girl pushed up her glasses, finger tracing the rim of the can. Her face was turned away towards the sun, "I don't know. Heheheh but I do know that I just finished my first can."

They shared a laugh and another beer, reminiscing about the past. A purr caught attention, making them look down at the demon cat. Bakeneko sat there staring at them both, speaking in that creepy projecting voice without even moving his lips.

"Master...What are you doing?"

His master looked down at the can and gasped at herself, realizing her mistake. She tossed away the can, ignoring Shura yell "Hey!", and scrambled to her up the bag and her familiar, Mizuki have Shura a hard look, "Quit it with having bad influences on me! It's a shame my own familiar had to lead me down a better path than you."

Suddenly a whoosh of blood went to the teenager's head and she stumbled around, not exactly knowing what to do. A bubbled laughter came from beside her, "Yer tipsy, Mizu-Mizu. You can't possibly go back to the dorms like that. Think of what they'd say 'President was drunk!'. Oh the horror of you losing your title so easily."

The two looked evenly at each other. Suddenly Mizuki puked all over the side of the road, causing her familiar to shape shift in it's human form and help her. Bakeneko rubbed her back and after she had finished, picked her up bridal style.

The busty exorcist rolled her eyes, "Go ahead and take her home. She's a good kid and I don't wanna see her crash and burn."

Standing up the now silver haired man took his master back to her dorm room, thankful that only one other girl was in there and asleep. He set her on the bed before taking off her coat, shoes and glasses.

"Good Night, Master."

**((Next Morning))**

"Gaaaaahhhhh."

Sitting up in bed, a messy halo of black hair framed sleep filled, pink eyes. There was a buzz going on in the room that the person instantly recognized as the buzz of an alarm.

A slim hand reached out and smacked the clock, nearly smacking too hard and breaking to button. Sunlight seeped in through and open window. At this time of day it was burning and- Wait. Were those numbers right?

"It's nearly 10 in the morning!"

Throwing off the blanket and hopping down from the top bunk, she went to her closet. She pulled out a clean outfit on a hanger before running down to the shower room.

After a quick freshening up, the girl ran back to the room and slid on her glasses along with her usual boots. Brushing out the long black hair and slid it into a single ponytail, Mizuki sighed. Checking the time it was now 10:03 and she was a bit late.

Only one of the roommates were up when she rushed out of the door and off campus. After a good ten minutes of running and a train ride later she came to her destination. Mizuki stood in front of a restaraunt.

'Why was she here?', people would ask. The reason why she, a high ranking exorcist and student class president, would be at the restaurant so early was because she worked her. Yes, Mizuki Hirabayashi worked at a restaurant despite the fact that she got a monthly salary as an exorcist.

Walking through the doors, her manager yelled at her, "You're 10 minutes late! Now you've got to stay 10 minutes later than your shift and clean the toilets today. Hurry up and get changed."

Not even bothering with an excuse the girl went into the back to change into her uniform. It was a simple blue skirt that reached her knees with a white polo shirt that had blue sleeves. Her hair tie was a matching blue ribbon.

From 10 am until 4pm, Mizuki bussed tables, served food, swept floors and...cleaned the toilets. Finally it was nearly time to go, she just had to finish the last 10 minutes.

Yet it was easier said than done. Being around 4pm the lunch rush was beginning to lighten up, so she sat off to the side on a stool. Her co-worker set down a burger and curly fries in front of her. The surprised girl looked up, eyes wide but the light caught her glasses and covered them.

The older woman laughed, "Don't worry about it, kid. The manager isn't cutting you any slack and from what we heard you work yet butt off even when you're not here. And I know you're hungry."

Mizuki stared before bowing her head, "T-Thank you! I g-greatly app-appreciate it and will was-wash my dish later!"

The woman chuckled and ruffled the teenager's hair,"Nonsense. Your shift is over see? Just eat and go home. Oh, don't worry. We remembered you're a vegetarian so it's a veggie burger."

The older brunette left the young black haired girl to enjoy her food alone. She ate daintily, wiping away the smallest of crumbs on her mouth and any free streaks of grease or ketchup.

Half way done with her meal she heard a loud laugh from behind her, "This place looks awesome! How come you never have more time to relax?"

An even voice answered, "Nii-san please be more quiet next time. But if you must know, I found this place by accident one time and I thought you might like it."

Mizuki turned her head, still chewing on a fry. That's when the two boys caught her attention. She smiled and waved happily, instantly catching the elder's attention. He jogged up to her stool, "Hey! It's Prez! What're you doing here?"

She blushed a bit, pushing her glasses up more, "P-Please do not c-ca-call me, 'Prez'."

Rin nodded, "Twin it is then."

She sighed and Rin took a seat on her right side, leaving Yukio to take the empty seat on her left. The three of them sat there only for a moment before the woman came back, "Hello there! Are you two friends of, Mizuki-chan's here?"

Rin smiled, "Yeah!" Yukio merely nodded.

The waitress smiled as she looked down at the blushing girl in the middle, leaning closer, "They're cuuuute neh? Wouldn't be surprised if you bagged both of them, either."

Mizuki slammed a hand in the counter, her voice shrill and her face beet red, "P-Ple-Please do n-not speak of s-such thi-things, Masa-Masamoto-san! It is rude!"

Masamoto chuckled, "Ne, calm down. Now how can I help you two fine gents today?"

Yukio fixed his glasses, ordering a simple pork and vegetable dish with tea while Rin order a bunch of random things with soda. She collected the menus, stopping only when the shy girl called out to her, "M-May I also get a straw-strawberry milkshake?"

Getting a nod from the woman she disappeared into the back. Rin nudged Mizuki, "You sure do know her well. And your clothes look like her uniform too!"

Yukio sighed on the other side, "It's kind of obvious that she works here. Don't you, Hirabayashi-san?"

He smiled kindly, making her blush dark pink. Her head swooned to the right before nodding, "Y-Ye-Yes."

"The older twin tapped his chin, "Twin has a job, eh?"

The girl whined, "P-Please don't call me y-your twin! We are-aren't related!"

Rin groaned before setting his head down to think of a new nickname. As he was sitting there thinking Yukio piped up, "Hirabayashi-san are you a an exorcist as well?"

Mizuki nodded, "Mmm. I saw you at the meeting yesterday. Plus you're the boy genius everyone is so proud of. Even Shura."

He spluttered, "You know Shura too?!"

The black haired girl slowly nodded once, "Yes. She helped to train me along with my father. Thanks to those two I'm an Upper 2nd Class!"

She smiled and both brothers eyes widened. Rin forgot about the thinking to gawk, "Whoooooa! Seriously? I'm only a Page!"

The girl gave him a thumbs up, "That's a good step forward. You must be in cram school. I remember being a page a long time ago."

Soon Masamoto returned with their food and drinks. She gave them all a wink before going to serve everyone else. The three ate in a comfortable silence, Mizuki finishing off her burger and now dipping the fries into her shake. Yukio made a noise in the back of his throat, "Is that really good? It seems...weird."

She laughed before scooping up some of the milkshake onto a fry, "Here. Try it before you judge it."

Since the teal eyed boy hesitated, his brother reached forward and snagged it. In a matter of seconds it was chewed and down his throat. They watched as he got a large grin, "That's actually pretty good stuff!"

Suddenly a pop song began to play, surprising the three of them. The waitress girl blushed before reaching into her apron pocket to pull out a sleek, purple phone. The number on the front said private, making her become serious.

"Hirabayashi Mizuki here. State your business."

There was a pause as the other person began to talk, she gave the occasional nod, "At this very moment?...Alright. Be there in 10."

Mizuki hung up the phone, sliding from the seat, "Excuse me boys but I've got a job to handle. Sorry I can't stay to chat."

Rin grabbed her shoulder, "Wait. Can I go? I want to see an exorcist in battle."

This stopped her and she looked over at Yukio as if to get permission. The chocolate haired boy sighed, "Fine. Just let us get to go boxes."

**(A/N): Now we've established that the three are all friends. Although Yukio and Mizuki have a more business relationship. Also Mizuki is a highly skilled knight and a tamer who learned from her father and Shura. Mizuki's father used to be an exorcist but he resigned. Also I don't know if exorcists get a salary but I made it so in here. Anyways thanks for reading. **

**~SecretBlackMagic~ has signed out **


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ao No Exorcist only Mizuki, Kotaru and Bakeneko. **

**Special thanks to my readers _PrincessofFlamesx_ and _hippy3599! _I dedicate this chapter to you two! **

**Chapter Three: Pretty Interesting Past You Got There**

To any normal citizen, these three teenagers walking down the road would look like regular kids, siblings almost. Yet they were three exorcists, only out of uniform...at least two were exorcists.

"I can't believe we get to go on a mission! Whoo!"

Rin pumped his arms into the air, a wide grin on his face. Yukio and Mizuki looked over at him, softly smiling. Yukio stood to the left, Rin was in the middle and Mizuki stood off to the right. The mission he had to take care of was near a busy street. It was on the Eastern side of the city, so they walked.

"You and I are only observing, Nii-san. Hirabayashi-san is the one who gets to fight today.", corrected Yukio. This made his brother pout, eyebrows coming together and lower lip jutting out.

Tinkling laughter caught there attention and they looked at Mizuki. She politely had her hand covering her mouth in an attempt to muffle the sound, "S-Sorry. It's just that..hmhmhm...you two are funny!"

Yukio's cheeks tinted a very faint pink before he fixed his glasses, "It's just friendly sibling banter. But Rin shouldn't expect much since he's a page. Pages don't do much besides study a lot."

The half demon boy clenched a fist, "I know that already! Okay? Doesn't mean I can't watch someone else though."

"Enough of that, you two. Were here already."

The trio stopped in front of what seemed to be a giant pet store. There were two men standing guard behind a block of post. Mizuki merely walked up and flashed her ID, "Hirabayashi Mizuki. Upper 2nd Class. I was called to exorcize this demon claiming to take over the pets in this store. Those two there are my partners. Yukio Okamura, Middle 1st Class. And Rin Okamura, Page."

The men nodded and she waved the twins in. Upon entering the shop, a tinkling bell alerted the shop keep. An older man stood behind the counter with an older woman, seemingly a couple. The man rushed over to them, "Thank goodness you're here. I think my pets have been possessed. Nobody wants to buy them if they're so violent."

Mizuki had an air of authority over her, the shyness completely gone. She set her hand on his shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze,"Don't worry, sir. I'll help your business get back to order. Tell me, have the animals gotten outrageously more vicious? If so which ones?"

The woman pointed to the dogs first, then to the birds and reptiles, "I don't know why one those three types but the birds go for your eyes, the reptiles go for your feet and the dogs just bite anywhere."

Rin started to laugh, "A possessed turtle seems like a seriously funny thing. I've just GOT to see that!"

Yukio smacked his brother upside the head, "Rin! This isn't a joke so knock it off."

Grumbling but obeying, the demon boy went to lean against the glass window. Mizuki nodded her head and went to check out the birds first. They instantly began to fly at the bars, beaks squeezing through the gaps at attack. The reptiles were no different, hissing loudly at the girls. And the dogs barked for all they were worth, foaming at the mouth. All three species had pitch black eyes, a sure sign of being possessed.

The female exorcist sighed, "The problem is simple actually. It's a low level possession on animals. But the real problem is that there are a lot of them. I'll have to take this fight outside."

The two shop owners gasped, "But what if they escape?"

The teen shook her head, "I won't let them. Also if I fight outside there is more room to fight. Rin, tell the guards to block off more of the road so I can fight, please. Okamura-san, can you hand me my bag?"

The boys did as asked. From her bag she pulled out two cans of holy water, setting them on the counter. Rin came back in from talking to the guards just in time to see her summon her familiar.

Mizuki was wearing another skirt that day and began to raise it up for the seal. The boys behind her instantly began to blush, not knowing what to do. "Hear my call, dear pet. I order thee to my side, Bakeneko!"

The seal glowed white again and soon the demon cat had appeared. He meowed at his master, "How may I assist you today, Master?"

Mizuki smiled at her cat, "I need you to tell me exactly which animals have a demon within them. I'd perfer not to douse them all in holy water. I'm running low."

Nodding it's head the cat pinpointed exactly which ones were evil. Grabbing the two cans, the exorcist looked back at her audience, "You might wanna go outside where it's safe and hold open the door."

The man and woman instantly ran outside but Rin was too entranced and Yukio merely held open the door. With everyone out of the way she cracked open the cans and threw them on the animals. There was high pitched screeching before a cloud of demonic souls were streamed into the air, heading straight for the door.

Bakeneko and Mizuki followed them outside, "Corner them for me, Bakeneko." "As you wish, Master."

Rin went outside to stand next to his brother, amazed when the cat suddenly shape-shifted into a giant ancient tiger. Yukio merely observed, watching all of her movements.

She yanked at her collar, placing her right hand over the shoulder, "Aide me in fight: Te no ken!"

The hilt appeared along with a pink light and Mizuki yanked it out if her, swishing it out to fight. Together her and Bakeneko took down the demons, covering each other's backs. A demon hit her in the face, knocking her glasses off and scratching her nose.

Rin leapt forward, "Mizuki!

Before he could run out there, Yukio thrust his arm out to stop him, "Don't worry. She can handle it. Plus her familiar has her back, see?"

Sure enough Bakeneko bit and swallowed the demon whole while Mizuki regained her footing. Soon, the demons were defeated. The two shopkeepers bowed deeply to the girl, "Thank you so much for saving our pet shop! We are grateful!"

The girl merely smiled, "I was merely doing my job. No need to thank me so profusely."

She watched them walk back into their store before bending down to pick up her glasses, noticing that there was a scuff on the lens. Shrugging anyways he put them back on, instantly regretting it.

"Agh! Christ that burns!"

The boys and Bakeneko rushed to her side and examined her face. There was a shallow scratch across the bridge of her nose. Yukio applied pressure to the area, "It's a temptaint but it doesn't look too bad. Come to our dorm and I'll fix you right up."

Her familiar shape shifted into a small hamster and clung to her shoulder, "I apologize for letting you get hurt.

She shook her head, eyes closed in pain, "It doesn't matter not was it your fault. I'll be fine."

Rin gave a thumbs up, "Yeah because Yukio's a doctor! And he's the best I know since he fixes me up all the time.

Mizuki smiled, averting her eyes to the ground at angle so they couldn't see them. To be honest, she didn't like when anyone sees her eye color. She was pretty ashamed of the odd color. Who in their right mind has pink eyes! It wasn't normal!

So that's how she kept them the entire trip back to the campus and into the their dorm. It was clean on one half and a bit messy on the other. It was pretty obvious who's side was who's. And they had this entire room to theirselves, which she noticed.

"Why is there only the two of you here? I thought it was four to a room?"

Yukio gave a kind smile, "We and Rin are under 'special circumstances' so we have to share a room."

Rin nodded, "They don't like to separate twins. Gotta keep us together all the time because we need each other."

Said brother face palmed before pulling out his medical equipment, "Please have a seat in the desk chair and I'll nurse your wound."

Mizuki took her seat and closed her eyes, leaning her head up for Yukio to see. His gentle hands gripped her chin, turning her face to examine the cut. Picking up some sterilizing spray he sprayed the cut before adding holy water to purify it and aloe to take away the sting. After applying the ontiment and a bandage, with Rin watching with interest, he clapped, "All done. It should only take about a week to fully close up since it was pretty shallow."

Her eyes creaked open, blinking a few times to regain her vision. The elder twin jumped from the bed, "Whoa! Your eye color is freaking pink! Do you have pink eye or something?"

Mizuki instantly turned away, closing her eyes and slipping her glasses on again. She didn't want this to happen and opened her eyes in front of them, "S-Shut up. Don't tease me."

"No I wasn't gonna tease ya. It's just you're the only person I know with pink eyes. Is that a family trait or something?"

The girl sighed and shook her head, "No. It's the result of my temptaint I got as a kid. Way before I even became an exorcist."

Yukio nodded, "The demon must have attacked your eyes, I assume." "You assume right."

Now interested in something else, the demon boy sat down on the top of the desk next to her, "Tell me about it. You're interesting."

Her hand gently picked up the mouse version of her familiar, smoothing over the silver fur, "It was out of jealousy. In the summers I used to stay with my grandmother and work the rice fields. She kept saying there was this demon cat out there and to be careful of him. One day after she went in, I stayed out to greet the cat. But..."

Mizuki gave Bakeneko a small squeeze, "A little somebody was still sulking and lashed out at my eyes. Yelling about how he'd be damned if he were the only one to ever have pink eyes in this world."

Yukio nodded, "I'm guessing that's how you met Bakeneko?"

"Yup. After that scratch he mutated them. It burnt really bad too. But after I had healed I saw the world differently. My dad told me that since I got hurt and could see demons, I could grow up to be an exorcist like him."

Rin sat back with an accepting look, "So tell me. What color were your eyes before the incident. I bet something normal, right?"

Surprising Bakeneko answered for her, "Master's eyes were going to unusual anyway. Her left eye was dark green and the right one was golden brown. Just like her grandmother."

Suddenly Mizuki's phone rang again, "Hello? Mizuki speaking...Alright...I'll check it...Goodbye Ishikawa-kun."

She hung up the phone and suddenly it buzzed again. Rin looked confused,"Who's Ishikawa and what's that?"

The girl set her familiar down and checked the phone,"Ishikawa is on the student council with me and he sent me an email. He's kind of like my partner and were helping a new store's grand opening tomorrow."

Yukio had went back to his desk to busy himself, Mizuki had moved to Rin's desk chair, but looked up, "Ishikawa-san is a second year right?"

She nodded,"Yep. I've known him for some years now. But I'll catch you guys later. Thanks for being with me."

The boys waved, "Night Mizuki." "Goodbye Hirabayashi-san."

**(Mizuki POV)**

I was nearly to my dorm room by now. Checking my phone it was only 6:45ish, so it wasn't all that bad. I felt Bakeneko squirm in my arms, "During autumn it gets pretty chilly doesn't it, Master?"

I nodded, "I'll seal you away until were alone again. I can't explain you to my roommates yet."

He nodded and I revealed my seal again, "I relieve you of your duties, dear pet. Return: Bakeneko!"

The white light signaled my familiar leaving. A chilly breeze brushed past my body, making me shiver. I brushed it off before continuing down the pavement.

It sucked to chose a skirt and no pantyhose or stockings today. Plus I had left my jacket back in my dorm room. Sounds of the night bugs resounded within bushes lining the edge of the courtyard. A lamp post that's light was on had moths and gnats surrounding it already.

The silence was comforting saved for the bugs and the bottom of my usual boots. I would always wonder why did I wear these but they're were so comfortable and functional. My ringtone came to mind and I began to softly sing it.

"I live for the light. I live for night. I live for the _hiiiiigh_ til I'm free falling~!"

"Hahaha...your voice is cute."

I whirled around, but a hand slipped over my eyes. A warm mouth leaned in close towards my ear, "Hey Mizuki-hime."

**(A/N): I'm starting to think these chapters are too long. Besides that who's the person that snuck up on Mizuki?! Plus we got a bit of her backstory. Review if you want. Thanks for reading!**

**~SecretBlackMagic~ has signed out**


	4. Chapter 4

**Special Thanks to PrincessofFlamesx, hippy3599, tainted lovely soul, justrunningwind, and MsMajorOtaku. **

**Chapter Four: Unwanted Lover**

"Hey Mizuki-hime."

The blinded girl bit her lip a bit, recognizing the voice she was so used to hearing, "H-Hi Ishi-Ishikawa-kun."

A deep chuckle rumbled from deep within his chest, finding her shyness so cute. The older boy bet a guy had never stood so close to her like this before,"You're so cute. It's a shame that nobody has claimed you yet."

The hand covering her eyes slid down to wrap around her stomach, pressing him backwards into him. Ishikawa's other hand slid down her arm until his fingers laced with hers. He brought the hand up to his mouth and gave it a light kiss, "You could have been with me a long time ago, ya know. You're just too scared that I would hurt you. I've already told you I'd never do that and I will wait for you. But...my patience is wearing incredibly thin, Mizuki..."

The way his warm breath ghosted over her ear as he whispered her name sent shivers down her spine. A blush stained her cheeks and she rubbed her thighs together nervously, "I-I-I...I'm sorry."

She looked down, biting her lip in embarrassment even harder. The hand that held hers shifted to where he could softly hold her cheek. Using his other arm he turned her a bit in his direction. Surprisingly he was giving her an even look, staring deep into her eyes as if searching for something.

A sigh escaped his lips before he smiled warmly at her. The blush that had started to disappear came back full force. Ishikawa was a handsome guy and she couldn't deny that much. His golden brown hair perfectly shone in the lamp post light, adding to his handsomeness. Ishikawa had quite the prestigious boy look.

Straightened, long hair with bangs that frame his face and pulled into a low braid. Sometimes a modest bow was tied to the end but not today. In those few seconds, Mizuki couldn't help but get lost in the shining metallic green pools of his eyes. It made her swoon a bit and he noticed the slight wobble of her knees.

Taking advantage of her weak moment, he pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth in a passionate and chaste kiss. As Ishikawa pulled away he made a noise in the back of his throat, his eyes smoldering into hers. There was a pain as he stared down at her, and when he spoke his voice was raspy, "You have no idea the type of control I'm holding myself back with. My feelings for you have been the same ever since we were in grade school."

His hand shakily caressed one of her ponytails. Suddenly his face hardened and he stepped away from her, the abrupt move letting the chilly air seep in. Mizuki hadn't even noticed how close they had been pressed together. A voice rang out to them from afar.

"What are you two doing over there? I know it's the beginning of Saturday night but c'mon! You're in a courtyard somebody will see you of course."

There was some random guy shouting in the group of his friends and it made the girl blush while her male companion glared them down,"Shut the hell up and mind your own damn business!"

The random guy who had interrupted him muttered before walking off with his friends. As they were left back alone the teenager looked down with a kind smile,"I'm afraid I've toyed with your heart on account of me letting my emotions get the best of me. Let me take you out for something to eat as an apology."

Upon hearing those words, Mizuki's stomach lightly growled. A blush broke out across her cheeks and he chuckled, linking his arm with hers, "Come along, Mizuki-hime. I'll treat you for the night."

**(Time Skip)**

The two were back in from of the girls dorm house and it was nearly 9pm. Ishikawa stood on the stoop while Mizuki stood two steps up.

He gave her a smile,"That bandage you have on your nose is cute and all but I wish it does not leave a scar. Your face is too beautiful."

His lips pressed softly against the bandage. The exorcist merely touched the tips of her fingers to it, "I-It won't."

She had not gotten to speak much since he dominated the conversations during the night. He was dominating everything around him as if he were an alpha male. Mizuki shot him a soft smile, "See you in the morning Ishikawa-kun."

The boy smirked, "Why don't you ever called me Kotaru-kun instead? You're so formal."

The pink eyed girl shook her head and fixed her glasses, "Ishikawa-kun sounds better. But good night."

Turning around, she left him at the steps to watch her disappear behind the doors.

**(The Next Morning)**

I awoke with a start. The bright sun shining across the ceiling. It was pretty early and I went to sleep pretty late. Aside from my...unintentional date with Kotaru, I stayed up late to do some homework as my roommates chattered on. They were nice enough to invite me to join them but I politely declined.

Being careful not to wake them, I grabbed a clean pair of clothes. Since it would be a grand opening, I decided on a knee length dress with a cardigan, stockings and flats. After a shower and usual hygiene rituals I returned to my bedroom to find my roommates slowly awakening.

I smiled at everyone, "Good morning."

They groggily answered back. It was a bit funny to see them so disoriented. Grabbing my brush, I brushed my hair up into it's usual two ponytails and put white bows at the tops. I grabbed a shoulder bag and walked out the door, catching the next train into the city.

The grand opening hadn't started yet and I recognized the student council members helping set it up. I merely joined in the work, stirring one of the giant pitchers of lemonade to serve. It was a bakery shop that offered to sponsor our track team once it got popular.

"Mizuki-himeee~. Good morniii~ng."

I nearly dropped the tray of cookies I was holding at the hands that softly rested upon my shoulders. My legs were rooted to the ground, "G-Go-Good Morn-Morning, Ishi-Ishikawa-kun."

Last night flooded my mind. The way he kissed the corner of my mouth set my body on fire at the former press of his lips sizzling against my mouth. My body couldn't react no matter how much I screamed for it to move. Kotaru moved around to stand in front of me.

He was wearing a formal ivory colored button up with navy blue slacks and dress shoes. His hair was in it's usual low braid with a thin black bow. The usual smile and smoldering look in his eyes was there, "Do you want some help with that? You're trembling..."

The moment his hand touched mine I shrieked and yanked away. For some reason the teasing was just too much and I couldn't take it anymore. The shivers he made my body feel were foreign and I didn't quite understand.

"You're so cute.", with a small grin he brushed my bangs aside to give me a quick kiss on the forehead. Turning on his heel he went to assist one of the new employees make the batter for chocolate tarts.

The rest of the time spent preparing for the grand opening I constantly checked my surroundings so as to not be snuck up on by him. A girl with bouncy blonde hair in a swirly ponytail skipped to my side. She held a fancy jug of pink juice, "Excuse me but can you help me pour this into glasses for the guests?"

Being polite I set down the tray of sweets I was arranging to help her. Just as we finished up I felt those familiar hand ghost over my waist, nearly scaring me out of my skin. My eyes flew open wide and a fierce blush erupted across my face. A cheek was nuzzled against my ear.

The blonde girl merely smiled and laid a hand over her heart, "Awwwwnn you two are just so cute! I didn't know there was a couple among you guys. That's lovely. Sure wish I had a passionate boyfriend for myself."

I began to tell her that we weren't dating but his hands gave my waist a tight squeeze,"Thank you. I find her extraordinarily cute. And I love her deeply."

"Kyaahh! That's just too cute! I'll leave you two to work on these together."

As she skipped away with a blush I turned to look at Ishikawa. The beating of my heart grew stronger as if it were ready to burst from my chest. My eyes could only stare into his. 'He just confessed...his love for me to another woman...Is it true?'

Disbelief must've been etched into my features because he chuckled lowly, "You knew it was true before I even said it. Quit being so modest. I'm merely waiting for you to accept my feelings."

Suddenly a bell rang out in the store, signaling that the grand opening was beginning. Everyone got into places and the owner opened the store with a warm welcome. Customers flooded the shop, filling up every seat within the shop. Employees and volunteers alike began to go around with trays of different sweets as the owner announced each one over the microphone.

Once everyone had something he began to talk about the store and answer any questions. I took this time to look around the audience and spotted a few faces from school. A face that caught me off guard was the delinquent looking guy near the middle who seemed to be glaring at me. His ears held a lot of piercings and his hair was streaked blonde.

I vaguely remembered him as the boy in my math class who was one of the people to get a high grade on the practice test. But that soon was forgotten when I heard the owner begin to thank the students from True Cross Academy for volunteering to help.

We all bowed and soon he was done speaking. Us student council members all got gift boxes with a sample of most the sweets we helped to make and little cards describing them. I thanked them deeply before returning outside.

Of course I was not alone on my trek. Kotaru slipped his hand around mine gently and led the way. I looked up at his face with a calm expression, "What is it?"

The guy I dared to call my friend feigned ignorance, "Whatever do you mean? Im merely walking my best friend back to her dorm. That is...unless you want to stop by mines."

On instinct I rolled my eyes, "Returning me to my dorm room will be fine, thanks."

A stiff silence followed and after a moment I gazed over at him only to jump. The metallic green orbs were staring deep into my soft pink ones. It struck a weird feeling within me because it wasn't normal, "What?"

He shook his head and looked away out of the window on the train, "Nothing. Just thinking."

We exchanged no more words as he took me back to my dorms. I waved but Kotaru curtly nodded and briskly walked away. 'Weird...'

Glancing down at my hands I looked at the box of sweets. Maybe I'll give them to Rin and Okumura-san tomorrow. Might stop by the cram school too. With a plan in mind I went into my dorm room and started on some homework.

**(The Next Day)**

The day had started off pretty slow and I was now sitting at the lunch table swirling my spoon in my soup. Sango was bad mouthing some kid at another table and Umi chuckled.

It wasn't my cup of tea to talk bad about people so I didn't participate in the jokes. I heard Momoe pipe up, her shrill voice clear as day, "Hey, stop it! That guy's hair is alright the way how it is."

Ryouko kicked Momoe's chair, "You're just saying that because your hair is pink too."

That slightly caught my attention and I looked over at the table two up from ours. As stated a boy with pink hair sat there laughing. He sat with two other boys. One was the same guy from the grand opening and the other was a shorter guy with a shaved head and glasses.

I didn't have much time to react before I felt a hand on my shoulder. Turning around I was met with a blinding smile, "Hello, Mizuki-hime."

I came face to face with Kotaru leaning over my chair. A gasp left my lips, "Ishi-Ishikawa-kun! You're not sup-supposed to be here!"

A chuckle left his lips before he stood back up to his full height. Kotaru held out his hand, "Come with me. I want to talk with you."

Everyone at the table began to watch eagerly, making me blush,"O-Okay..."

Umi began to whoot, causing people to stare, "Who knew the president was such a dirty girl?"

She didn't even flinch at the look I had shot her as I was led away by Kotaru.

**(Back in the Lunchroom)**

People were walking around with their own trays of food, eating, talking, and laughing.

At a table sat a boy with chocolate brown hair and glasses surrounded by a group of girls. They were fawning over his lunch and commenting on it.

"Okumura-kun is so smart and cute." "And he's so tall!" "He makes his own lunch even with the advanced classes he takes!" "Okumura-kun is so amazing."

Yukio sat there with a blush on his cheeks, smiling at them, "Sorry to disappoint but I didn't make my own lunch. My nii-san made it for me."

There was a pause as the girls all looked at each other. One girl shook her head,"His nii-san is a delinquent." "Yeah I bet he can't cook." "He's too stupid." "And weird." "Okumura-kun is just too modest and wants to make him look good."

As they gossiped, a tick mark formed on the boy's temple. Taking a deep breath Yukio calmed himself before giving the group of girls a sickly sweet smile, "I'm sorry ladies but I'm afraid I don't appreciate you all talking about my brother like that. I'm going to have to ask you to leave me alone."

There was a gasp and soon they began to apologize but the boy genius merely turned his head away. He continued to eat his bento and gaze around at everything else. Then his eyes landed on a certain girl he had begun to know.

It was Mizuki Hirabayashi. Who was sitting down at a full table, talking to some guy standing in front of her. His long, brown hair was pulled into a braid and behind his back he held a giant box. Yukio watched as Mizuki blushed a bit before she stood up and took hold of the held out hand.

The two turned away and he led her from the dining hall to a place he couldn't watch anymore. An unfamiliar burning sensation filled his chest and his hand squeezed the chopsticks on reflex. A quiet snap was heard, signaling that he had squeezed too hard.

Gazing down in surprise, the exorcist merely tossed them in the trash before pushing away the bento box, appetite gone.

**(After Lunch)**

Teenagers in similar clothing were all walking the halls, filing into their classrooms.

For a certain group of people it was time for an advanced math class. Miraculously, a good chunk of the students had seen each other. Yukio shared this class with Mizuki, too. Benkei, Sango, Ryouko, Momoe and Umi also shared this math class. Unfortunately, Ishikawa share this class as well.

"Can there be any more surprises today?"

**(A/N): I'll be honest. I'm not too happy with this chapter. But I'll try my best with the next one. Kotaru Ishikawa is the other OC to complete this love triangle. He's known Mizuki for many years, a bit after she had recieved her temptaint and familiar at the age of 6. Kotaru really does love Mizuki and tries to express it at every waking moment they cross paths. And Yukio is getting the beginning stirrings of jealousy?! Haha anyways reviews are welcome, sorry for mistakes, and thanks for reading!**

**~SecretBlackMagic~ has signed out**


	5. Chapter 4 part 2

**(A/N): I've decided every four chapters I'll do a filler that's just irrelevant towards the plot. (It's currently 2:08am n it might be messed up a lot) So here's up for the first one!**

**Chapter 4.5: I Got To Eat Senpai's Lunch!**

"Ahhhhh! Why'd I have to be up all night reading manga! Then I overslept!"

Rin groaned and held his face in pain. His stomach grumbled loudly as he walked into the dining hall to find his brother. Spotting the younger twin in the midst of fangirls, he started to slowly make his way over, chewing on his lower lip.

Shame and embarrassment filled his body, even more so when his stomach growled again. Rin had felt like such a failure. Not only was he gonna suffer, but Yukio was too. The demon boy had finally made it across the room and the fangirls instantly began to back away.

Ignoring them, Rin turned to his brother, rubbing at his neck, "Listen Yukio. Before you say anything, I want to say I'm real sorry and I'll make sure this never happens again. But...I overslept again and this time I didn't make us lunch so...yeah."

Yukio merely stared up into Rin's eyes, making him squirm. The chocolate haired boy sighed and looked down, "Rin...I could've sworn I told you to make sure you made lunch because I was running short on money this week. It looks like we'll have to skip lunch today."

Rin groaned and spun away with tears in his eyes. But just then they landed on his pink eyed friend who was currently walking to get her own lunch. The demon boy instantly got an idea and started to run over to her, "Mizuki-senpai! Hey! Hey! Hey!"

She stopped humming to turn at the yell, a smiled lifting her lips, "Hm? Oh hey Rin-kun. What's up?"

The blue eyes boy grabbed both her hands and leaned down into her personal space, their noses nearly touching, "I have a super uber important favor to ask of you!"

She blushed and inched away a bit, flustered, "Wh-What is it?"

He took a deep breath before staring into her eyes, "Do you think you can spare me and Yukio lunch or lunch money?! We'll be forever grateful and pay you back! Promise!"

She looked confused for a moment before smiling again, "Of course! I can get both you and Okumura-kun anything you want for lunch."

In a instant she was hoisted into the arm, tightly held in his arms and he spun her around happily, "Ahhhh! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOOOOUUU! You're a lifesaver!"

He set her down and she immediately fixed her glasses and pulled her skirt back down. Rin grabbed her hand and pulled her towards Yukio, who watched the entire ordeal with a raised eyebrow. His older brother gave a bright smile, "Guess what Yukio! Mizuki-senpai is gonna get us both anything we want for lunch! She said so! Isn't that great?

Yukio faltered a bit, looking over at the black haired girl who was fixing her glasses again, "Is that alright with you, Hirabayashi-senpai? Lunch is expensive here."

She batted his worry away, "Oh it's quite alright. All the student council members get free lunch passes and even have a designate lunch area. If you guys want we can go there today."

Rin hugged her again, "YEESSSS! Oh I'm so glad were friends and you're so amazing! C'mon Yukio let's go eat! She's like freaking royalty status here!"

With his free hand, he dragged both glasses wearing teens behind him to go get food. At the large glasses, he choosed out a giant plate of Italian pasta and grilled fish with garlic bread. Yukio took his time before ordering a stuffed beef slice with steamed vegeatables. Mizuki got a simple fruit smoothie and salad.

Rin made a face, "That's all you want? Won't you just be hungry again later?"

She shook her head, "I don't eat much. So this will hold me until tonight."

At the cashier, he rung up all the items and they watched the numbers climb up high. "That'll be 81,048¥ please."

As the twins choked on spit at the amount, Mizuki merely handed him three lunch passes and took her tray. The man nodded and smiled at her as he took the passes, "Have a nice day."

She smile back and picked up her tray, "Thanks. You too. And say hello to the wife and children for me."

Rin and Yukio had finally snapped out of it and were walking on each side of her with their trays. The trio then exited the dining hall through a side door labeled 'Specified Personnel Only'. Mizuki punched in a few numbers on the key pad then opened the door to the room.

She didn't really pay attention to the decor like her companions did as they stopped dead in their tracks to take in the room. Rin's mouth fell open wide and Yukio could only stare wide eyed.

The special room for student council to eat in had walls mostly made out of glass with metal beams. There were ceiling to floor length drapes that had pushed out of the way to let in the sun light. The floor was polished white tile that sparkled in perfection. There were elegant glass tables dotting the wide floor.

A few thin yet beautiful rugs laid about, taking up some of the floor. There were about ten tables that could sit four people at each, black and white curved chairs pushed in. Exotic plants have the nearly transparent room some color.

Mizuki had placed herself at a table near the left side in the middle which was close the glass wall. Another boy sat at the table with her, lazily smiling and holding her hand. Yukio recognized him as the boy who had taken Mizuki from the dining hall yesterday.

The Okumura brothers made their way to the table, sitting in the other two empty chairs. Rin wave at the brunette, "Hi. I'm Okumura Rin. This is my twin brother Yukio."

He gave a nod in their direction, "I am Ishikawa Kotaru. Pleased to meet you two."

Yukio gave a faint smile, "The pleasure is ours, Ishikawa-san."

Mizuki clasped her hands together at them all seemingly getting along, "Ishikawa-kun I hope you don't mind. It'd be nice to see two new faces around here every once in a while right?"

The green eyed boy smirked and brought her hand up to his hand to kiss, "If you wish it then so be it, Mizuki-hime. Plus friends outside of student council should be alright."

After he said that a loud voice erupted from across the room, "Oi! Ishikawa! Hirabayashi! Aren't ya gunna introduce us?"

The two turned to look at the girl who was shouting from her table. She had an athletic build and stood with one foot on the chair, giving a hard look. Her eyes were a blazing orange and had a frizzy brown Afro with a green headband holding it back. The usual uniform blazer hung open and contrasted against her milk chocolate skin.

Her foot stomped on the chair again, "Well?! Don't just stare at me dammit! Introduce yourselves!"

Kotaru gave an apologetic smile, "Ah...Sorry. This here is Yukio and Rin. They're Mizuki-hime's company for today."

The girl then gave them a analyzing look before blinking, "Ah...Hey. Are you two twins?!"

Before they could answer she had ran over and began to clutch at their faces, "Oh my gosh you two are! I can totally see the resemblance in the eyes and face shape. The hair is almost there but whatever."

She laughed and Yukio gently removed her hand, "Excuse me but who are you?"

The laughing stopped and she leaned back, eyebrows launching far up towards her headband, "Ah. Who am I? You ask who I am?"

Rin made a face and mumbled, "Well I mean he isn't asking you on a date."

She apparently heard him and smacked the back of his head before crossing her arms, "My name is Riley Evans. I'm the 3rd year president. And before you ask no I'm not Japanese. I'm from America."

Rin grinned happily at her, "Well then I like American girls because your skin looks like yummy candy bar. All smooth and dark."

She blushed before scowling, "Shut up! They're are people with tans darker than me, ya know!"

A meek boy from behind her pulled onto Riley's sleeve, "Uh. Miss Riley. Uchiha-san asks can you lower you voice please."

The orange eyed girl whirled around on him, "Kenichi can go fuck himself! He's a damn tight wad and I'm not bowin' down ya him in any way what's over! Should shove my foot so far up his ass they'd need the entire hospital staff to remove it."

Riley made a fist before angrily stomping back to her seat with the boy in tow. Mizuki, Kotaru, Yukio and Rin were merely watching on while eating. Yukio cut at his beef slice, "If there are only three presidents then why is there so many people in here?"

Mizuki took a sip of her shake, "For every president there is a Vice President. And they have to be opposite sex. Since I'm a female and 1st year president, then I have to have a male Vice President, which is Ishikawa-kun here."

Said boy gave a light smile, "The only male president here is Kenichi Uchiha. His Vice President is Hikaru Udon. They're the two sitting over there by the door."

Yukio and Rin looked over to see a boy with messy black hair and shiny black eyes. He had his feet crossed on top of the table while a girl with blonde hair fed him pasta. A bored look was on his face while he ate, letting the girl wipe his mouth and tilt the cup to his mouth.

Rin made a face, "He acts like he's royalty or something. She doesn't have to do that does she?"

Mizuki sighed and stabbed at her salad, twirling the forkful of lettuce in the air, "No but she doesn't ever complain. I think it's because she's got a major crush on him."

Kotaru smirked an grabbed the fork from Mizuki's hand, leaning close, "I wouldn't mind having to feed you Mizuki-hime. It'd be an honor in my eyes. Now say ahh and open wide."

With a fierce blush across her cheeks she merely complied, opening her lips wide as he slid the fork into her mouth. He slowly pulled it back out as she closed her lips around it, holding her gaze the entire time. The act stirred up a heat within her belly and she finally looked away, chewing with vigor.

Rin was gobbling away at his own food, taking giant bites and forkfuls of the fish and pasta. He was completely obvious to the act while Yukio paused to stare. Something within him cracked, beginning to ooze out and burn hotly at his skin. When Mizuki turned away he could've sworn Kotaru shot him a victorious smirk before taking a sip of water.

Shaking off the look he returned to his own plate. There was a slighty comfortable silence as they took a moment to eat, the sounds of crunching and forks filling the air. Rin finished first and rubbed his stomach happily. A burp escaped him and he have an embarrassed look, "Sorry. Excuse me. It's just that really hit the spot on such an empty stomach."

Mizuki and Kotaru gave short laughs while Yukio shook his head. The demon boy looked around, "Where do I put this now that I'm done?"

Kotaru paused on his bite of potatoe, "See that squat counter over there next to the trash can? Just dump the plate and set the tray on top. There's a guy who comes in here afterwards to collect dirty dishes."

He nodded and went to go get rid of his mess. While he was gone Yukio asked another question, "Who else in here besides the student council committee?"

Mizuki picked up a tomatoe, "There's the captains and presidents to every club and sport in the academy here. That's why there so many tables. But some of them don't come in here to eat since they'd rather sit in the normal section."

Then she did the weirdest thing he'd ever seen a person do with a tomatoe. She BIT into it. Like it was an apple of something. The utter repulse must've shown on his face because she paused in chewing, "What? Is it because I eat tomatoes like this? Sorry. I just really like them."

Kotaru gave her a warm smile, "You love all the fruits and vegetables. That's why you're a vegetarian in the first place."

She made a face, "Whatever Ishikawa-kun. And no I don't. Have you ever eaten avacado? That's just gross. You think it's weird anyway. You dumb meat eater."

Mizuki stuck her tongue out and he chuckled, grabbing her cheeks to swing her face side to side, "Ah ah ahhh. If you keep making cute faces like that might have to be rude and kiss you on the mouth this time. And in front of your friend too."

His eyes flitted over to look at Yukio before looking back at the black haired girl who's face was nearly as pink as her eyes. With a laugh he released her face, a small yelp escaping her, "Ishikawa-kun you should quit that! You play with me entirely too much. After all these years and you're such a persistent flirt!"

Kotaru leaned close to her face with a smile again, the sunlight shimmering within his eyes and shining in his hair perfectly. His voice dropped lower than usual as he whispered in that voice he knew turned her to jelly, "But you know I could only flirt with you Mizuki-hime."

She gave an exasperated shriek before pushing him away, "My God! Not in front of Okumura-kun! He's my kohai and my friend! You're making this awkward. I swear it feel like trying to make some show to him that you own me or something! He doesn't deserve to see this."

After yelling at him, Kotaru could only stare up at her wide eyed. Slowly his hand reached out to touch her cheek, "Wow...Did you know your angry glaring face is beautiful? I should upset you a bit more often."

She smacked his hand away to pick up her tray, "I'm sorry if you're not done Yukio but were leaving. I can't take Ishikawa-kun's teasing anymore for today."

The teal eyed boy merely nodded and rose with her, picking up his tray. When she walked in front of him, he shot Kotaru a sly grin. The green eyed boy could only stare at their backs as they dumped their trays and exited the room with a confused Rin in tow.

**((After Lunch))**

Yukio and Mizuki were walking nearly shoulder to shoulder back to math class. She was still upset about the lunch room incident, "Okumura-kun I'm so glad you're not a jerk like him. I've known that guy for years and he can still get under my skin. It's in his nature or something."

The girl blew a sigh before pausing to smile up at the tall boy, pushing her glasses back up on her nose, "Sorry for complaining to you though. I'm sure you have more pressing maters at hand."

Yukio shook his head, "Oh you're fine. I don't mind really. I'm a good listener and I'll be available whenever you want to talk."

He bit the inside of his cheek at that. 'What if I sounded to desperate? Idiot! Now she'll think you're weird!'

Her face went blank for a second and she stared up at him blinking. The silence gnawed at his insides before she gave a kind smile, lowering her eyes, "Yeah okay. Thanks for the offer Okumura-kun. Do you...want to exchange numbers so I could call you?"

The chocolate haired boy nodded and reached into his pocket for his phone. They switched phones and typed in their names and numbers before switching back. He gave a small grin, "Now this is what really makes us friends. So you can just call me Yukio."

Mizuki smiled back, "Then you can just call me Mizuki."

They turned and entered the classroom together, sitting in their usual seats with smiles on their faces.

**((Later On At Night/ Okumura Dorm))**

It was getting to be about midnight and Yukio was just settling down for bed. Rin was snoring loudly on his side of the room, having went to bed hours ago.

The younger twin rubbed at his eyes and set his glasses down on the desk before sitting down on the bed. As he laid down, the events of today filled his mind. A grin spread wide over his over his face, "I got to eat lunch with Senpai!"

/./././

**(A/N): There you have it folks! The first filler to Complex Love! Like mentioned earlier,** **I'll be posting one of these every four chapters. And they'll be of random things. I added some competetion between Kotaru and Yukio to spice it up a bit. As a fun fact that 81,048 yen is equal to $800 in American money. (101.31¥ =$1) Anyways thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed!  
**

**~SecretBlackMagic~ has signed out**


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five: Senpai!**

Since it was an advanced math class the room was a special one. It was one of the few classes the students could switch in and out of depending on their level. Most of class 1-17, Mizuki's homeroom, had this class as well as a few 2nd year student and failing 3rd years.

"Hey guys. Today's the day we take the real test! Good luck!"

Everyone looked at Benkei who gave a bright smile and thumbs up. People were doing last minute reviewing but jumped at the sound of a briefcase being slammed into the desk. Looking at the front, the teacher stood there holding his usual black briefcase and with a hard look.

"Take your seats. Calculators and pencils out. Scratch paper and formula sheets will be provided. Eyes on your own paper."

As everyone scrambled to their seats, it was clear who would ace it. Miraculously in the first seat of each of the six rows were the smartest kids in class. From left to right sat Ryuji, a 2nd year named Akemi, Yukio, Mizuki, Kotaru, a 3rd year named Zuke, and another 2nd year named Akiko. So in total there were 3 first years, 2 second years and only 1 third year.

It was made so that nobody could cheat off the smart kids if they all sat together. Leaving everyone else to try harder. Before the test even started the Hirabayashi girl already started to sweat in her seat. To her left sat her growing crush Yukio Okumura and to her right sat her childhood friend and love interest Kotaru Ishikawa. A hand landed softly on her shoulder and she looked over to her fellow exorcist. He gave her a soft smile, stilling her racing heart, "It's okay Hirabayashi-san. You'll do excellent on this test."

A sigh escaped her as she handed back the scratch paper and formula sheet to people behind her, "Tha-Thank you, Oku-Okumura-kun."

The teacher cleared his throat again, voice booming off the walls, "Tests have begun to be passed out. Silence, students."

For the remainder of class the only few sounds were pencils scratching papers, eraser squeaks, stray coughs and groans of thinking. The boy Zuke finished first and flipped the booklet over, relaxing back in his seat. Yukio finished second with Akiko and Akemi right after him. Soon everyone began to finish except Mizuki and Kotaru.

"20 minutes left Mr. Ishikawa and Ms. Hirabayashi."

With newfound panic Mizuki got down to her last problem. As she was stuck on calculating the answer, the boy beside her breathed a sigh of relief and flipped the packet over. Then he shot her a thumbs up and happy smirk to encourage her. Taking a deep breath, she circled her answer then closed the booklet.

"Alright. Now that all the tests have been finished, come up row by row to hand them in."

Starting with Ryuji's row, everyone set their test in a pile on top of the teacher's desk. Students eyes were either cast down in nervousness or sharp with confidence. Sango passed Mizuki and gave her a wink after ogling Yukio. A few high fives resounded along with happy whispers. Now it was suddenly Mizuki's turn to hand in the test.

Her eyes panned left to see Yukio egg her on, and then right to see Kotaru smile. Standing on shaky legs she wobbled up and set down her test. But being the klutz she was, when the girl turnt for her seat she tripped on her shoe. Instantly her body rushed towards the ground but luckily a hand grabbed each of her arms, catching her.

"Kyah!"

With wide eyes she looked at the ground that was a mere two inches from her face. Gulping loudly, she was then hauled to her feet by her two saviors. Both Kotaru and Yukio had rushed forward to catch the president and were now giving each other a sour look.

"Ah...Thank you Ishikawa-kun, Okumura-kun. Sorry everyone, I'm just so clumsy."

When they had finally let go of her arms, she sat down at her desk, hanging her head in embarrassment. Since everyone walked between Yukio and Mizuki, Kotaru set a hand on her shoulder, "But being clumsy makes you extra cuter. Don't worry, everyone makes a few mistakes."

His hand went up and gently brushed a lock of her bangs behind her ear before trailing down her cheek. A bright pink blush marking the trail of his fingertips. The teacher cleared his throat, "Please refrain from intimate touches in class Mr. Ishikawa. Do so on your own time and turn in your test."

The entire class began to "Oooooo." while he smiled sheepishly, "Sorry sensei. It won't happen again."

When Zuke's row had finished the bell had rang, signaling class had ended. Everyone had gathered their bags and tried to get out as fast as possible. Ryuji walked past Mizuki, glaring at her from the corner of his eye. She didn't catch it since she kept her own gaze downcast, walking back towards her home room class. As she reached the door, fingers curled around her wrist, another hand cupping her chin, "C'mere Mizuki-hime."

Kotaru stood behind her smiling brightly, "I won't be seeing you til about 6:30 tonight so I wanna kiss you goodbye."

As the preppy boy began to lean in for a forehead kiss a hand intercepted it. Pulling away as if he kissed fire, Kotaru's green eyes glared into Yukio's teal ones. The latter forced a soft smile, "No intimacy during school hours, Ishikawa-san. Hirabayashi-chan and I have class, goodbye."

With a curt nod he steered the stunned girl into the class and to her seat. She looked up at him in shock, and he didn't expect her stare, "What? Is something wrong? Do I smell or something? Sorry, I had gym today too."

As he rambled on, Mizuki finally regained her voice, "Okumura-kun...did you try to rescue me?"

That put an end to his rambling, "Oh that? Well students aren't allowed to have public displays of intamacy during school hours. You should know that as first year president, Hirabayashi-chan."

The chocolate haired boy looked at her softly, teal eyes gleaming, "Are you dating Ishikawa-san?"

Her pink eyes flew open wide, "Wha-What? N-No! Okumura-kun I haven't dated anyone a day in my life. Ishikawa-kun and I are just childhood friends and that's how he says good bye to me sometimes."

There was a quick moment of silence between the two. In that silence, Mizuki watched as something brightly burned in Yukio's blue green eyes, confusing her. Before she could ask him about it, he turned away for his seat without another word. Looking towards the front of the room, Mr. Takashi was coming to stand at the podium, "Alright guys. I think everyone is a bit happy to be going home soon so how about we play a little game?"

A majority of people cheered happily, free to relax a bit before getting out. He laughed and clapped his hands together, "That seems to be a yes. So this is how the game works. It's a bit of a trivia to also help in keeping up with your studies. Those monthly evaluations are coming up too, young people. Anyways, each row acts as a team to guess the question right first. It goes in order too so for the first question everyone in the first chair answers. And so on and so forth til we come back around. Questions?"

A boy with wild black hair raised his hand, "What happens when two people raise their hand at the same time."

Mr. Takashi shrugged, "Simple. Play Rock Paper Scissors for it. "

He clapped his hands again, "First question! Get ready first chairs."

**(Mizuki POV)**

In between encouraging my classmates and answering questions, I snuck glances at the younger Okumura twin. My heart throbbed a bit each time I looked at his gorgeous profile. If this was what a crush really meant then I'd gladly be in his fan club committee.

I held a hand to my shoulder where he had touched me at, remembering the sensation of his fingertips pressing against the bone gently to push me forward. His scent faintly lingered to my side where he had stood, smelling like the earth after a refreshing rain shower and cool mint. There were no traces of sweat whatsoever in the smell, making me believe he didn't even have any.

"I wonder how his sweat does smell..."

I whisper softly to myself as I looked away from him again to stand up for the question. He was second chair two rows over while I was third chair in the fifth row. Gazing at the board I realized I had blindly raised my hand to answer for a chemistry question.

"Which element in the periodic table is Au?"

I stumbled a bit over my lips, "Gold."

Mr. Takashi smiled and gave our team a tally mark, "Correct. Fourth chairs get ready! This is so easy you might mess up."

In his hand he held up a picture of the letter C in black ink. A smile was on his lips, "Tell me what this is please."

A girl in Yukio's row raised her hand, "But it's just the letter C."

Mr. Takashi laughed, "No not quite. Read into it more."

The boy from earlier with the messy black hair raised his hand, "Its the Black Sea!"

Throwing the card up, our teacher congratulated him, "That's the thinking I wanted! Correct!"

Soft chuckles resounded through the class as they all got the joke he played, "Okay, we've got about two minutes left so I'll total up the scores and see which team won."

Everyone watched him go up and write the total amount under each team name, but there was a three way tie. It was between group 3, Yukio's row, group 5, my row, and group 6, the one delinquent looking guy's row. I think his name was Ryuji Suguro. As a tie breaker, our team nominated someone to go to the front and have another game of paper rock scissors.

There were three boys nominated and they stood in a semi circle, fists at the ready. Gasai-kun, Masamoto-kun and Hideki-kun. It was funny seeing them look so nervous about a simple game and I giggled, gaining their attention. Muffling it I smiled, "Good luck Hideki-kun."

He blushed, his fluffy head of orange hair falling into his wide, amber colored eyes. Mr. Takashi stood off to the side, "One...Two...Three! Rock! Papers! Scissors! Shoot!"

Masamoto-kun, who was from group 6, shot out paper while Hideki-kun and Gaai-kun shot rock. The other two sunk in disappoint while group six cheered. Mr. Takashi smiled and waved down the excitement, "Calm down, calm down you crazy kids. Now as a prize, you can have your pick of a homework pass, lunch pass, or 10 extra point bonus on your next test or quiz."

The row of my classmates eagerly left to get their prize while the rest of us got our bags together. As soon as the bell rang for the end of the day, the halls were filled with teenagers filing out of the school. I was carried away in the swarm and I suddenly remembered what I was to do today. Quickly, I made my way towards my dorm and went to my side of the closet where the box sat.

It's pink color gleamed at me which made me smile. Snatching it up, I ran back outside towards the boys' dorms, scanning all the faces in the crowd. When it cleared, I was disappointed, "One of the Okumura twins should be around here somewhere..."

As if by a miracle, I spotted a familiar head of black hair and glasses far towards the abandoned boys' dormitory. Okumura-kun! Running towards my fellow exorcist, and by the grace of God I didn't trip, I smiled wide. His face was serious but upon seeing me it lightened up just a tad, "Hello Hirabayashi-chan. Oh? What's that for?"

I held up the box and tapped it, "I went to volunteer at a pastry shop yesterday and got some desserts. I wanted to share them with you and Rin-kun. That is...if it's okay."

My heart was beating erratically at talking with my crush and I could just feel the beet red blush on my cheeks. Being under his gaze made me squirm nervously, my hand rubbed at my neck as the silence continued. It was a bit too silent and I raised my gaze, "Ah...Okumura-kun are you - Huh? What's wrong?"

His eyes were staring hard at me for some unknown reason and it kinda scared me. It was as if Yukio were in some kind of deep thought. His eyebrows were pulled together hard with his mouth in a thin line. Just as I opened my mouth to speak his hand reached out and grabbed my shoulder again. The force behind it was a bit rough yet it turned gentle just like his features.

Soon I was looking back into his softly smiling face, "Hirabayahi-chan would you mind being a guest in class today?"

It surprised me but I didn't mind, plus I can still go on my date at 6:30. I nodded, "Sure. It'd be nice to see how cram school is after so long."

Turning the other way he started to walk off, leaving me to trail behind. In the silence of our walk I thought back to when I had first started to become an exorcist. I had been terrible at most things but my father had pushed me really hard. After all his pushing and hard training I finally got my head together and became his little prodigy. As for my group of graduates...

My eyes trailed over to Yukio and I sighed. Truthfully, I knew Yukio a while ago when we first became exorcists. He was such a goody-goody like I am now. But I was a bit of a rebel back then so of course he wouldn't remember me. Although...I did kind of pick on him a few times when we chose what kind of meister we wanted to be.

We were nearing a door when I grabbed his sleeve. I watched him turn back a bit, "What is it Hirabayashi-chan?"

A lump formed in my throat and it hurt to try and swallow or spit it out. My face grimaced a few times before I could speak, "Eh...U-Uhm...D-do...Do you remember me from when we were first exorcists?"

He face went blank then he squinted at me, "What? But...you weren't in my graduating class. Were you?"

I laughed sheepishly, "I didn't think you'd remember me because I've changed. But...I was there when we became Exwires."

A light shown behind his eyes and fully turned to look at me, "Hirabayashi-chan...If I remember right didn't you call me a snot nosed punk back then?"

He smirked at me and I instantly blushed, "I'm sorry Okumura-kun! I was so mean back then but I had to grow up. So I apologize for what I said in the past."

Yukio made a face between a smile and a frown, "You look nothing as you did when we were 8."

A giggle escaped me and I handed him the box. Taking my hands I took out the ponytails, messed up my bangs, took off the glasses and then held back a bit of the hair to make it look shorter. I flashed him a devilish smirk the younger me would have done in an instant. A gasp escaped him and he poked me in the shoulder, "Ah! It is you Mizuki! What happened?"

Laughing, I fixed my appearance back, "With that attitude I couldn't get anywhere far in life. But let's get to class, don't want you to be late."

Yukio handed me back the box and then opened the door with his key, letting me walking into the colorful hallway. A sense of nostalgia filled me as I trailed down the hall, tracing my hand over the doors. Smiling as we walked, the two of us stopped at a classroom door.

He opened it in one fluid motion and entered, turning towards the students, "Hello everyone. Today we have a special visitor with us."

As he smiled and waved me in, I sheepishly ducked my head and went to take a perch at the edge of his desk. Scanning my eyes across the tables I took in the class. There were only three girls and five boys. Pretty big class compared to the average three or four.

Over on the far right side I recognized Ryuji and the other two guys from lunch. In the front sat Rin and a blonde girl. She looked familiar and that kimono looks like...Oh! It's Moriyama-san's daughter! To the left of them sat two other girls I could tell were close friends. In the back sat a blonde ventriloquist and a hooded guy. Weird, but unique I guess.

Rin smiled at me and waved, "Hi Mizuki-chan! I didn't know you'd be in our class today!"

I waved back, "Neither did I until a little while ago. But shh Okumura-kun needs to start class."

A voice from the edge of class rang out, "Aren't you our President?"

Looking at the pink haired boy I nodded with a smile, "Yes, I am Mizuki Hirabayashi. First Year President."

A soft snort came from the red eyed girl, "I bet she's a lame nerd."

Ignoring her comment I turned back to Yukio, "Sorry to interrupt your class Okumura-kun."

He waved a dismissive hand, glasses catching the light oh so perfectly, "Oh no worries. Today is a quick review and then a short quiz."

Rin groaned and held his head in pain, "Yukio I can't take another quiz. My brain is gonna pop!"

Moriyama giggled and patted his head, " It'll be fine, Rin. I'm sure you'll do better than last time."

The blue eyed boy sighed as his twin held out a book. Leaning back against the wall I watched from the sidelines as he taught the class, his voice strong and even. Yukio asked questions at random, calling on anyone unexpectedly. His students mostly answered correct to which he praised. In Rin's case, since he answered wrong, he shook his head and told the older twin to do better.

At the end of the review, he held up the tiny stack of papers, "This test is a timed one. You all have 35 minutes to complete all 20 questions."

When he passed them all out he started a timer and set it on the desk, "Starting now."

Instantly, pencils began to scribble on paper. I watched as Rin groaned quietly to himself then tap the pencil on his chin only to frown and smack his head on the desk. It made me giggle and I coughed into my fist to avoid making a loud noise. A few eyes glanced in my direction and I waved them off with a smile. Yukio stiffly stood in front of his desk, watching everyone take the test with sharp eyes.

Something about the prodigy in his coat and glasses with a stern exterior made my knees turn to jelly. While we waited I thought about everything known to man. My shift of work this Wednesday night, studying, eating with the Okumura twins, and my date at 6:30 with Kotaru.

Ishikawa-kun...

He was an overall good guy but he had a few bad points. Like the guy could be cold as ice to someone at the drop of a dime. Or would lie to anyone to make himself seem better. It disappointed me to see those types of things but they had lessened as he grew up. Back as children he was the mean rich boy with long, girly hair and a stuck up attitude. I remember trying to pick a fight with him and snatching away his lunchbox when he called me a name.

It was a bit funny because I was taller and stronger than he was. If I were to try and do that now, he'd probably snatch it right back and step on my foot in anger. Yet again...he wouldn't be able to catch me since I'm still faster and stronger than him. Suddenly loud ringing was heard and I blinked at he white dial shaking around furiously.

Yukio stopped it, "Pencils down and turn them in please."

Slowly, everyone rose and gave back their tests, returning to their seats looking a bit sullen. While he graded them, everyone went to quietly having conversations. I timidly leaned over Okumura-kun's desk, "Do you want any help?"

He smiled up at me, fixing his glasses back over his nose, "No thanks. But if you want you can socialize with my students or me. I wouldn't mind."

I softly smiled back and leaned against the desk further, "So, do you test them often?"

Not looking up he answered plainly, "No. Soon we should do an experiment with the blood of a demon. If you have any spare time and if your familiar was willing maybe we could use his blood?"

My lips twisted in thought, "Uh...maybe. But Bakeneko doesn't like for anyone but me to touch him. So I'll convince him."

His brown head bobbed and he continued to grade tests, teal eyes scanning over answers. A male voice called out to me from behind, "Excuse me, Miss Hirabayashi?"

I turned to see the short guy with glasses calling me. I tilted my head to signal him to speak, "What class of Exorcist are you?"

The girl I was beginning not to like had a snide remark, "I bet she's a Lower 2nd Class."

On the inside I was being to get upset but I merely gave a sickly smile, walking over to her, "That would be a bad assumption little girl. I am an Upper 2nd Class exorcist. I am also a Knight, Tamer and Doctor. So if I were you, I'd watch my tongue around the higher-ups, _page_."

Turning curtly on my heel I returned to the front of the class, everyone wide eyes at my answer. Suddenly Ryuji burst out laughing, "Cat got yer tongue eh Kamiki? Ah hahaha!"

Everyone else began to laugh as well, making the Kamiki girl blush in embarrassment. The pink haired boy who sat with Ryuji and the short bald boy raised his hand, "Does that mean that Okumura-sensei is your kohai and you're his senpai?"

I shrugged a shoulder, "Technically I'm everyone in this room's senpai. But don't feel bad, I'm a lot of people's senpai."

The Moriyama girl had looked at me with awe, then bowed her head, "Please make me more respectable like you. Hirabayashi-senpai you're super cool!"

I blinked down at her, dumb founded, "Uh...but I'm not really cool. I'm only good at fighting and academics. Other than that I'm basically useless."

Rin slammed a hand on the desk, "Dude! You were amazing in that fight against those demons, Mizuki-chan! Oh man, Shiemi you should have been there to see it. She's got this cool demon cat that can shape shift and this bad ass sword that's got this weird shape! Plus she's like super fast and skilled, like a ninja from a movie to something. And her cat can talk!"

I heard a few whoas from the boys on the side and they all looked at me with wide eyes. I blushed while looking away, "I-I-I was-wasn't all tha-that coo-cool ya know...Rin-kun pl-please stop."

Mentally cursing every bad deity, my nervous condition came back full force in that moment. My body got jittery and my knees began to shake horribly, my lips trembled and I felt as though I wanted to cry and pee at the same time. This was bad, how the heck did I not see this coming after basically flaunting in front of everyone.

Thankfully Rin caught on and swooped me from the front to sit at the table next to his which was in front of the Ryuji guy. Even as I sat down, my breaths were coming up short and I couldn't do anything but stare at my desk. Their eyes were still glued to me and with a terribly shaking hand I pulled out a pill from my pocket and took it. Shiemi, as I now knew her name leaned forward to see me. Concern filled her eyes as she looked over my now sweaty condition, "Are you alright Hirabayashi-senpai? You don't look so good."

I opened my mouth but nothing came out so I shook my head, body still trembling a bit. Ryuji sighed and looked away, "Senpai has some kind of weird nervous condition. We've got home room together and it happened after she introduced herself on the first day of class."

A smirk played on his lips and I could tell he was one of he kids who had snickered at me. Turning around, I shot him a glare but it didn't do much good since I was still trembling and blushing hard. The pinkette behind him just smiled wide at me, "Awwwwwn! Senpai looks so adorable!"

Getting from his chair, he came to sit in the empty seat next to me, "Tell me Mizuki-senpai. Do you have a boyfriend already? He must be one lucky guy."

It caught me off guard and my mind whirled with thoughts of Yukio and Kotaru. Since I wasn't fully recovered I started to hyperventilate and quake harder, cheeks flushed. 'Oh shit. I'm about to-'

My eyes rolled back into my head as I fell backwards onto Ryuji's desk. The last thing I heard were a few gasps and chairs scraping against the floor.

**(A/N): That was a tricky one to write. It's seems super duper long. I ran into a bunch of road blocks during this. I also want to clear up that yes Mizuki has occasional nervous breakouts like that. The reasoning will be explained in a next chapter. Just stay tuned my lovelies, please.**

**~SecretBlackMagic~ has signed out**


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six: Remember That One Time**

They watched in confusion as the black haired girl grabbed at her chest with squeal before going quiet. Her eyes rolled back and then she fell back onto her pierced kohai's desk. Shima yelped, scooting back in surprise, "What the hell happened?"

Rin leaned close to Mizuki's face, "I don't know but her eyes look freaky like that. Out like a light too."

Suddenly a hand pushed him back in the chair and then gently sat Mizuki's head upright. Yukio was leaning over her, checking her heartbeat and temperature. His hard teal eyes closed for a second before meeting Bon's confused brown ones, "Suguro-kun you're in charge while I'm gone. I've finished grading the papers but just sit tight. I'm taking her to the infirmary."

His arms slid under her body and hoisted her upwards, lifting her as if she were a mere pillowcase. A hand tugged on his coat, "What happened to her?"

Looking back at his older brother he let his lips curve upwards as if into a smirk but stopped half way though, "Had a panic attack and then passed out. Shima must've really overpowered her mind just now."

Within five strides he had reached the door and was out of it in the next, letting it click closed behind him. His steps resounded in the near silence, Mizuki's soft breathing was the only other sound. His eyes glanced down at her, head slightly turned towards his chest and arms lying lifeless.

For the first time in all that he had known her since re-meeting her, he actually took the time to analyze her from head to toe. Yukio looked at the way her bangs fell across her forehead in a well kept mess, a few strands falling onto her closed eyelids. Mizuki's cheeks were a bit rosy at the tops, 'Just like her cute little lips - Wait what?! This is my senpai!'

Shaking his head, the tall teen opened the door to the empty infirmary, laying her down softly on a bed. Since he was a doctor himself, he had no problem performing a quick check up on her, coming to the conclusion she should just rest. He checked his watch, there was only about another 7 minutes on his shift for class anyways. But his things were still in there.

Not really wanting to leave her alone, he bit his lip, staring into his fellow exorcist's sleeping face. Her chest rose and fell a bit slowly but she was still breathing fine. Having to bite the bullet no matter how much he wanted to stay, he had to head back to the classroom.

With one last glance, he let himself out with a soft click.

Eyelids slowly creaked open, revealing sakura colored orbs to the world. They blinked a few times before staying open, looking around the plain room.

"You've awaken I see. That's good."

Trailing over to the right, the pink pools met smiling turquoise ones. The boy closed them, glasses catching the light from in the ceiling. Leaning forward, he set a hand softly on her forehead, "How do you feel, Hirabayashi-senpai?"

A blush heated her cheeks warmly and she parted her lips to speak but nothing came out. Yukio looked down at her lips, admiring the supple curve and the pink as bright as her eyes. He felt a tiny bit of jealousy at that. His weren't at full and pink but then again he wasn't a girl. Yet, he'd kinda wanted to just kiss her lips instead of have her lips. A short shock went through his body at the thought, and he leaned away, almost snatching his hand back too fast.

Mizuki looked at him, seemingly ashamed and embarrassed, "Sorry about...passing out in your class. I didn't mean it."

The boy merely shook his head, "It's alright, you couldn't have controlled it. Are you better?"

She sighed and looked down, "I need a moment to let me settle back down. These things take a bit out of me. I can usually catch em."

His lips turned down a tad in a slight frown, "Do these happen often?"

She nodded, "Just from time to time. I do a lot of things stress related but I manage my time as best as I can. Ah...Okumura-kun do you remember when we were trying to become Exwires?"

The chocolate haired boy sat there and zoned out into a flashback.

_«There were about 10 years old and were abandoned in an old factory in the slums of the city. There were only four of them, three girls and one boy. Yukio and Mizuki were the same age but the other two were nearly 14. Even so, the three girls nearly always stuck together, snickering and pulling pranks on anyone. The four of them were to stay in the old factory the entire night after the test to show courage._

_Junko and Rukia, the 14 year olds, were happy about being able to mess stuff up at their own free will. Mizuki could have cared less and Yukio was scared stiff. How could these girls really be this brave? It was idiotic to him! He trembled a bit in his shoes, clutching his sweater tighter._

_Junko hopped on top of an old conveyor belt, slinging her long spiky green hair everywhere like a rock star, "Whooo! Rukia are you ready to partaaaaay?!"_

_Rukia jumped up on it too, phone in hand blasting out a rock song, "Let's rock out!"_

_As the two had their own party Mizuki laughed, watching them dance around to rock music in equally punk rock clothes. Junko wore a long sleeved green shirt under a black halter top with a matching black mini skirt and green stockings. Her black boots were stomping around on the conveyor belt as she played an air guitar wildly._

_Rukia had short black hair with long wavy bangs and sharp brown eyes. She wore a plain navy dress with long sleeved with undershirt. Her little dark blue wedges clicked to the beat. Yukio was standing very far away, eyes jumping around at every dark corner._

_He nearly shrieked when he felt a hand on his shoulder, instantly calming down when he saw his peer staring at him. Mizuki brushed her messy bangs away, "Hey kid, you know there's a bathroom that still works in the back. Go clean that snot nosed face of yours."_

_Her eyes were a bit hard and he brought a hand up to feel that he indeed had an oozing nose. Dashing off the direction of the restrooms, she laughed out loud at his retreating form. While he was gone, Junko and Rukia switched up songs, now singing their hearts out off key. Mizuki got up there to join them, dancing around and making lots of arm movements. Instead of coming back out, Yukio decided to sit in there by himself, not wanting to socialize._

_To him they were trouble and he didn't like too much trouble. So all the laughs and shrieks of their fun just faintly echoed into the bathroom where he sat. Yukio had pressed himself into a corner on the short but thick counter, looking up at the flickering lights and empty stalls. The entire ordeal felt like some kind of scary movie setting. All that was needed was -_

_"AHHHHHH! A DEMON!"_

_-a scream from a girl. Pushing himself from the corner and scooting off the counter, the chocolate haired boy timidly went to peek from the doorway. Just as he could make out his classmates in the darkness, a giant feline demon came roaring around._

_It was dark silver with dark pink swirls all around it's coat. The limbs looked a bit deformed yet strong, and there were too many extra. It's four tails swished around , smacking at the high up equipment. Junko and Rukia scrambled further up the conveyor belt to get away leaving Mizuki behind. The little girl screamed as the demon bluntly chomped down on her with it's teeth, blood spurting everywhere._

_By then everyone was screaming, watching Mizuki feebly reach her hand out before dying. When she fell limp, the cat spat her out before going for the two teenagers next. Junko jumped into Rukia's arms, shrieking and crying profusely, "AHHHHH! Mr Demon please have mercy on us!"_

_Rukia sobbed, "It killed Muzuki! Waaaaaahhhhh!"_

_As if by the grace of God, the demon backed off, disappearing in a giant misty cloud. When it began to clear, a single silver haired cat sat in the center of the room, nonchalantly stretching out. At that moment the two girls got angry and jumped down on it, the green haired rebel grabbed it by the neck, "What kind of fucking joke is this?! Answer me you damn demon cat you just murdered my damn classmate!"_

_Rukia knelt down to her fellow black haired female, gently brushing hair away, "Oh Mizuki. What I wouldn't give to hear your voice one more time..."_

_"You...can...Rukia."_

_Suddenly Mizuki's eyes popped open wide and she smirked at the other two, "Gotcha! You guys are gullible!"_

_Rukia started to cry in relief but Junko got angry, "Why'd you freakin do that?! And whose damn cat is this?"_

_Mizuki sat up, wiping at the fake blood, "That's my familiar, Bakeneko. He helped me come up with the prank."_

_As she laughed again, it was cut short by a fist hitting her jaw. Soon Mizuki and Junko were on the floor fighting it out with Rukia mixed between cheering and breaking it up. Yukio could only sit in the background, sinking down to the floor. He was the only boy and yet he watched instead of trying to help her. It wasn't real this time but what about next time? Could he be ready when that time came? Could he save them or would he just hide again?_

_His eyes watched as the two fought on the ground, really giving it their all. A particularly hard punch was aimed for Junko's eye but she blocked it to elbow Mizuki in the cheek. The younger wobbled before kicking out the teenagers legs, knocking her down and standing over her. She glared down with hard eyes, "It was just a prank, chill out Ju-Ju. And we all know I'm the best in hand to hand combat so you won't win against me."_

_The green haired girl nodded, a sour look on her face, "Yeah okay...That's before I do this!"_

_Twisting her legs, she slammed Mizuki into the hard ground, making her groan in pain. They began to wrestle again, more forcefully that the last. Rukia was now trying to rip them apart, seeing that the hurt girl was bleeding. She looked behind her, "Yukio you coward come and help break them up!"_

_Standing back up on wobbly legs, he made his way to the fight and tried to pull them apart. But all movement stopped at the sound of a loud creak. There was a pause and it sounds like something heavy was bending. They looked up and saw a heavy duty crane of some sorts bending at a rapid rate. Forgetting the fight they hurried to get out of the way as it finally broke and fell down._

_Narrowly escaping being crushed, Junko kicked Mizuki, "Because of that prank we nearly died! A kid like you shouldn't even be around other people!"_

_Yukio, who was pressing his fingers to her cut to hold it closed, shook his head, "No look! It's demons breaking in to the factory."_

_Sure enough their eyes landed on the flock of miniature flying demons swarming in through the giant hole in the ceiling. They instantly got into battle mode, forming a tight square with all their backs pressed together. Rukia began to chant a death verse while Junko covered for her, slashing away with her katana. Yukio only had one gun in his pocket and whipped it out, shooting a bit blindly. Mizuki held one hand to her head, ordering her cat profusely, "Protect me Bakeneko! Kill them!"_

_Her familiar shape shifted into a giant again, swallowing up their enemies with giant mouth fulls. Yukio had dropped his gun by accident, hands too shaky and sweaty to hold it. The bullet rang out and pinged around the metal in the room before luckily hitting a demon that nearly got Rukia. Junko turned and glared at him, "Oi! Pick up the damn gun and get to bustin at these things! Yer little friend there is stealing all the glory!"_

_With renewed vigor and a slight quake, Yukio began to shoot a bit better. Though to their confusion, the swarm began to just disappear right before their eyes. Before anyone could utter a word, the Paladin himself walked in through the doors, "Hello, children! You've all lasted until midnight. Congrats."_

_He blew a little kazoo, "Now you guys are Exwires. But...some things didn't really go as planned. There weren't supposed to be giant pranks, or crazy fights going on."_

_Shiro gave Mizuki and Junko a hard stare. Sighing he set his hand on his hip, "So because of this, all four of you have to face a penalty. After Hirabayashi here gets medical treatment. Doctor!"_

_A doctor swooped in and began to tend to her head wound, cleaning and stitching it up right there on the spot. As she was being treated Rukia tentatively asked, "Father Fujimoto why did the demons suddenly go away? That's odd."_

_The tall man waved it off, "Those things were breed for stuff like this. And we dosed them in a serum meant to dissolve them at midnight."_

_Junko glared at her feet, "I don't like when people play with me like that. We almost died back there."_

_Yukio grabbed onto his father's coat, "Can we all go home now? I don't like being in this place, daddy."_

_Shiro smiled down warmly at his son, "Yes. Everyone can go home now. I'll have escorts for you three young ladies in a moment."_

_After that Yukio gathered up a bit of courage and went over to Mizuki who had just finished treatment and was petting her demon cat. Avoiding her gaze he waved, "Hey...uhm...Sorry about your head. But...I just wanted to say you were pretty awesome and I'm glad you're on my side."_

_He rushed it all out in one breath, a blush burning at his entire face furiously. After looking down for a minute or two he peeked up at her face and saw her crying. All embarrassment forgotten he reached a hand out, "Are you alright?"_

_Mizuki sniffled, "I thought I was really gonna die!" »_

"Hmhmhmhm. Yeah you thought you were gonna die. And back then I was such a coward that I couldn't even help you. What about it?"

Yukio watched as she twiddled her thumbs, "I think that's what made me turn good I guess. After that I was nervous about any dangers and began to lighten up on the pranks. Still got that scar though."

She giggled and rubbed her head where the stitches were hidden by a ponytail. A small silence followed before he picked up the pentagon prismed pink box. Yukio opened the latch and gave a smile, "These are the desserts you brought for me and Nii-san? They look like they'll be really delicious, Mizuki-senpai."

The girl smiled at him lightly, "Those are all the ones I helped make yesterday during my volunteer duty at a new pastry shop. I want you guys to keep the names of the ones you really like so I can go back and buy more."

He gave a little laugh, reaching in to grab a raspberry chocolate brownie, "You don't have to do that, Mizuki-senpai. You're too kind."

She waved him off and smiled again, "It's no trouble really. The owner said I got a permanent discount. Plus they give exorcists discounts so it's basically dirt cheap. Don't you like sweets?"

Yukio had taken a bite and was slowly chewing, trying to savor the chewy, chocolatey, fruity morsel. After a moment he swallowed, looking down at the brownie in wonder with wide eyes. His senpai laughed, "I'll take that as a yes. Rin would probably only eat the extra pretty ones."

His brother looked back at the rest of the sweets, "Uh...but they're all extra pretty. I've never really been one to be around sweet things a lot but this was amazing."

They shared a smile but it suddenly dropped as she pulled her phone from her pocket, "Oh... It's only 4:50. I should probably go so that I can get ready."

She began to pull the blanket back and set her feet on the ground. Yukio politely scooted away and stood to the side, "Where do you have to be?"

Mizuki slipped her shoes back on and smoothed out her clothes. After fixing her glasses she looked a bit sheepish, a blush dusting her cheeks, "A-ah...I've...I seem to have to go on a dinner date tonight."

There was a immediate tense silence afterwards and she gazed up to see him wearing a stony expression, "Can I ask who it is and why?"

He watched her play with the hem of her skirt, "Ishi-Ishikawa Kotaru..."

A heat flooded through his veins and he clenched a fist, angry and...jealous of Kotaru? Sure he was an upperclassman and was a rich boy and handsome but Yukio knew he lacked real world qualities. Obviously the guy couldn't take care of himself and obviously he can't do anything manually. A sigh escaped him and his eyebrows knitted together, "Is that what he asked you about during lunch? He asked you out on a date with that big box he had in his hands? And why he tried to kiss you?"

There was thinly concealed anger in his voice and his hands gave a slight shake. Mizuki's pink eyes flickered nervously between his hands and his face, watching him grit his teeth. In a calming gesture she laid a hand on the tall boy's shoulder, "Yukio are you upset? Look, calm down it's not serious. His parents are having a dinner party and he needs a female to be at his side to promote more earnings for their company. I'm just going to be eye candy. Ishikawa-kun is just a childhood friend. I can't see him as a lover..."

Anger fizzled out to be replaced with understanding. Okumura gave a tiny apologetic smile, "I see. Well I believe you need all the time you can get to prepare for the event. Let me walk you back."

His arm reached out to link with hers and he led the way from the room and out of the school. Well on their way back, the two started up a new conversation. Mizuki giggled, "I can't believe Rin-kun is such a silly guy. The two of you living together must be a rollercoaster in that dormitory."

Yukio chuckled back, "You have no idea. But here you are, all in one piece for your date. See you tomorrow Mizuki-senpai."

The glasses wearing girl smiled back at him, stepping up on the first step. There was a great height difference between the two so now they were a bit even. She averted her eyes for a moment before quickly wrapping her arms around Yukio's neck, "See you later Okumura-kun. I hope we can become close friends soon."

Before he could answer back she turned on her heel and ran up the steps into the building. The chocolate haired boy stood there, a slight blush at the hug and mouth hanging open. Quickly composing himself he stuffed a hand I his pocket while the other gripped the pink box, "I hope so too...Hirabayashi-chan. I hope so too."

...

Inside her dorm room Mizuki looked at the dress within her hands with awe. Her three roommates sat around her, jaws dropped to the floor.

"Ishikawa got you THIS?!"

My face turned unbelievably pale and I got light headed. This was sooooo not in my comfort zone.

My roommates suddenly became a whirlwind of limbs, pulling out every cosmetic tool and polish known to man.

**(A/N): Alright I'll admit this chapter was jumbled in my eyes. There was one main focus in this and after I met it everything else got winged. Next installment should be way better. Thanks for reading.**

**~SecretBlackMagic~ has signed out**


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven: Stake Your Claim**

I twitched and fidgeted constantly in my outfit, trying to adjust it so I was more covered. All my efforts were futile since as soon as one spot was hidden from very, another patch of skin was revealed elsewhere.

With a sigh, I let the escort lead me towards the door, opening it for me. I smiled at him in thanks before stepping inside. Classical music met my ears, echoing off the marbled pillars lining the corridor. My heels clicked loudly in the empty space as I neared the ballroom.

The double doors were open to reveal a room full of fancy people in equally fancy clothing carrying on fancy conversations. So not my style.

Glancing around through the faces and uncertainly walking through the crowd, my eye met metallic green ones. As we gazed at each other they widened, "Mizuki..."

_(Kotaru POV)_

I was talking to another heir when I saw her. My beloved.

The outfit I had bought for her looked more gorgeous than it had on the models who I bought it off of. It was a little lacy black dress that cut across the collarbone, leaving it to have only one left sleeve while the other was bare.

Mizuki's body was the perfect in it. Her stomach was as flat as the wall which helped exaggerate the outward curve of her hips and bust. The smallness of her waist was also exaggerated in the black fabric as it clung to her form, not a single wrinkle appearing. The toned muscles of her legs stood out more with the Mary Jane black wedges she wore.

Her hair was wrapped into a elegant bun at the back of her head, bangs swept to the side instead of falling across her forehead. Whoever did her makeup put on just the right amount of eyeliner and eyeshadow to make the pink orbs pop and stand out brightly. I licked my lips at the bright pink lipstick she wore. I noticed those pink lips stretch into an uncertain smile, blush rising.

Forgetting the conversation, I instantly began to move towards her, "Mizuki...you look...exquisite."

She flushed again and fidgeted, averting her eyes. I basked in the length of her full, dark lashes as they nearly touched the apples of her cheeks. After a moment she looked back up at me, "Well this is quite the party hmm? I haven't been to one of these since you were still in junior high."

I chuckled and gently grabbed her hand, bringing it to my lips to kiss every fingertip, "But. This wait. Was definitely. Worth it. Love."

I gave her a dashing grin to which she blushed again. It made me swell with pride on the inside everytime her cheeks glowed with that adorable warmth at my actions. That I could make her flush so easily should surely be a world wide accomplishment. While I had her distracted with kissing her hand, I snaked my other around her waist, "Let's dance. You do remember right?"

Mizuki looked up at me, blush still disappearing, only to smile brightly, "Yes. I do."

That cheeky smile made my heart flutter before pounding harder within my ribcage. Instead of blushing like she does, I smirked and interlaced our fingers. We began to step and twirl and dip around the ballroom floor, other couples stepping out the way.

My eye took in her lithe form as I dipped her once more, moving my lips to plant a hard kiss at the base of her neck. A gasp escaped her and she jerked in my arms. Instead of letting my beloved fall, I wrapped my arms around her tightly, bringing the shorter girl to stand flush against my chest. Pants escaped her parted lips, eyes wide with fright.

I ran my index finger down her cheek, gazing down at her face lovingly. Another blush spread and I smirked, whispering to her in a voice that would surely turn her to putty in my well moisturized hands, "You look like a perfect little doll. I should put you on the highest pedestal and behind glass doors so everyone can bask in your beauty and not touch you."

Without any response from her, I lightly tilted her chin up and leaned in, capturing her lips firmly. A small squeak escaped her mouth which I soon began to dominate. I swallowed down any other noise she made, pulling her closer to me. When I had my fill, I slowly pulled away, aiming a sexy smirk her way.

Mizuki's cheeks were bright red and her lips were still parted, staring at me wide eyed. Using the pad of my thumb, I swiped away the smudge of her lipstick and a spot of saliva. A hearty laugh caught our attention and we turned to the side.

I grinned kindly, "Father! Mother! Look, Mizuki-hime has arrived."

My mother chuckled behind her hand, "Yes we know. We would've greeted her but you two were dancing then kissed so lovingly. I do want grandchildren just not right here please."

My father laughed deeply, "Oh Kotaru-kun and Mizuki-chan have been in love ever since their diaper days nearly. Let them be. Though I do want grandchildren from you two only after high school at least."

I nodded, "It would be my honor to have Mizuki-him chose to have my children. The journey to parenthood would be an exciting one yes?"

My gaze returned to the young woman in my arms, seeing her look down bashfully and fidget nervously. The three of us laughed at her reaction. Once my parents left I led her to the banquet table, seating her next to me. After a few minutes, it seemed everyone had gathered to their own seats.

My father stood proud at the head of the table, myself sitting a near the middle with Mizuki at my immediate left.

_(Mizuki's POV)_

I was quietly sipping my wine as Mr. Ishikawa spoke loudly.

"We call upon the presence of such wonderful company to attend the ceremony of young love. Ladies and gentleman tonight the bond between my rightful heir to the company, Kotaru, will be taking the hand of Mizuki Hirabayashi in holy matramony! Let us celebrate to the engaged young ones!"

Despite the warm applause and smiling, I felt my blood run cold. The wine I had been sipping clogged my throat and I heaved hard, forcing it back up and into a napkin. Kotaru's warm hand patted my back but I yanked away, whipping around to stare at him with wide, upset eyes.

He had forced me into an arranged marriage for heaven's sake! I was so confused, a bit elated, sad, disgusted, scared and anxious. Those feeling only intensified as I numbly felt him raise my hand and slip a ring onto my finger. He then leaned over and planted a kiss on my already parted lips.

Cameras flashed continuously, forcing me to close my eyes for a moment. At that same moment, Kotaru began to plant feather light kisses all along my face and neck. And by the sixth one, I merely relaxed into them. All these years I had been fighting off my feelings but I actually had loved him back.

Yet...Yukio...I had a crush on him.

What will happen to Yukio and me if he finds out I'm engaged to Kotaru-kun? I didn't have much time to ponder on that as I was whisked away to the dance floor and spent the night living in the moment.

It was hours later, nearly midnight when I found myself lying in cool, crisp, silky sheets. It was too late to go back to the dorms and I was way too tired. Since Kotaru-kun and his parents didn't mind, I slept in his room for the night. The bed was huge so I assumed I could sleep in one half while he took the other.

After changing into a nightgown he prepared for me and removing the makeup, I had laid down, relaxing my muscles. Right as sleep began to consume me, strong arms wrapped around my torso, pulling me against a firm chest. Lips pressed into the nape of my neck, warm breath sending a shiver down my spine, "Good night Mizuki-hime."

I hummed sleepily, "Good night...Kotaru-kun."

...

The next morning I awoke to the sun shining down on my face.

I sat up, rubbing at my eyes and stretching my stiff muscles. A chuckle met my ears and I looked over to see Kotaru leaning in the doorway, watching me wake up. He seemed to already be dressed and fresh from the shower. I blushed and looked away, realizing I was beginning to stare.

His soft footsteps came over to the bed side where he kneeled down over me, still smirking, and pressed a long kiss to my lips. When he pulled away, he pecked my nose, "Good morning love. Breakfast is ready and we have a uniform here for you."

I gave a small smile, "Good morning Kotaru-kun and thanks."

He pulled away to sit at the end of the bed, his long, reddish brown hair pooling around his hips. Without thinking I reached out and ran my fingers through it, relishing in the cool, silky strands. His laughter surprised me, "It's been a while since you played in my hair. Do you mind braiding it?"

For some reason a fluttery feeling shot through me at the simple task of doing hair. Sitting up on my knees, I gathered all of his hair to the base of his neck and started weaving it together into his usual braid. The edge of it fell against the small of his back. Now finished, I slid off the bed, heading for where I remembered the bathroom to be.

After I had gotten ready, with them providing everything I needed, we were all downstairs having a light breakfast. Kotaru sat by side, holding my hand while his parents sat on the other end, holding hands as well. Mr. Ishikawa smiled at me, "It's nice to finally call you our daughter officially. I'm so happy he found you, Mizuki."

I ducked my head, "Thank you for you compliments but I'm not really all that truly. I don't even come from a wealthy family."

Mrs. Ishikawa scoffed, "Oh please sweetheart. You're a rare gem. With your beauty and smarts, there's no way you could've been found in this wealthy stuff. I'm glad you're not or else you'd be using us."

Kotaru lightly cleared his throat, "Mother isn't that good with words. I hope you'd remembered. She just means she likes you the way you are and it doesn't bother them."

I slowly nodded and kept eating, falling into a comfortable silence. When we all finished eating, they sent us off to school. For some reason, Kotaru never let go of my hand for one minute, dragging me around as if I were part of him. As we stepped foot inside of the school building I had finally remembered, "Kotaru-kun I don't have my bag or homework! I have to go back to my dorm room to get it!"

_(Narrator POV) _

He gave her a dazzling smile, hearing as some nearby girls sighed dreamily, "I got you covered. Your roommate Kaori offered to bring it. Look there she is now."

The strawberry blonde was skipping towards them, her short pigtails swishing around her smiling face. When she came to their side she gave a sly grin, "We knew you weren't coming back last night Mizuki-senpai. Gihihi what'd you guys do after the date? Huuuhh?"

Mizuki blushed and looked away, "That's personal Koari-san. Thank you for bringing my bag. I appreciate it."

The brown eyed girl gave a wave and bright smile after handing over the bag, "See you later!"

The two watched as she skipped out of sight, blending in with the crowd. Kotaru tugged her along by the hand, ignoring all the stares and whispers around them.

"Isn't that Vice President, second year Ishikawa Kotaru? Is he actually holding hands with the first year president Hirabayashi Mizuki?" "She's so plain!" "He's such a handsome boy. Why'd he hold her hand?" "Oh my God is she wearing a ring?!" "Noooo! They can't be dating!" "Ishikawa-kun is mines!" "Haven't they been friends since primary school?" "She's so lucky! I bet he feels sorry for her."

Mizuki was staring down at her feet, eyes stinging with heat behind the lenses. Luckily nobody could see or they'd make fun of that too. Kotaru gave her hand a tight squeeze, "Let me take you to class, Mizu-hime."

She gulped down the tears and forced a smile, pleading her voice would be even, "Okay Kotaru-kun."

He gave her a heart melting smile, ignoring the fangirls, and opened the school door for her. The walk down the halls was a comfortable one. Except for all the glares aimed her way and mutters of revenge. There were even the occasion threats coming from some guys who dared to crush on Mizuki.

Finally at her homeroom door, the green eyed boy leaned down to peck the crown of her head, "I'll see you at lunch, Mizu-hime. I love you."

She averted her eyes, giving a curt nod, "Love you too."

His hand softly caressed her cheek before he turned away to head for his own class. Heaving a deep sigh, the pink eyed girl went and sunk into her seat. As soon as she had relaxed a paper ball hit her head. There were a few snickers but she opened the paper nonetheless. In chicken scratch she made out: Senpai you're dead meat.

'Well...This is about to be one crazy week.'

...

She was hiding in a tree, listening to the footsteps of a giant group of girls run past. When the coast was clear, the girl slid from the branch, jogging back to her dorm. At the door another girl was waiting, hurriedly waving her inside, "C'mon! Hurry up and shower while the coast is clear!"

The black haired girl dashed inside to the shower room, "Thanks Riley! I knew I could count on you!"

After a quick five minute shower instead of the usual 25, Mizuki was quickly pulling on her clothes. With the skirt halfway up her thighs, a voice called out to her.

"Mizuki-senpai?"

She whirled around to meet the uncertain face of Paku, sighing in relief. The brunette looked confused, "Why are you showering in secret? Is there someone harassing you?"

Her senpai bit her lip, pulling up the skirt and lacing up her tennis shoes. It was embarrassing to tell your kohai that you were being harassed by other girls in their age group. Instead, she shook her head then fixed her glasses, "It's alright. Just...don't tell anyone you've seen me."

Without waiting for a response, she ran from the shower room to her own dorm room. There she grabbed her exorcist coat and started for the front doors. But in the middle of the hall, she came across someone else. It was a girl with wavy blonde hair and sharp black eyes, "ITS MIZUKI! HEY SHE'S OVER HERE!"

Instantly a myriad of footsteps were heard, all heading in their direction. Mizuki cursed under her breath and turned around, running full speed. Just as she made it to the other staircase, a group of girls cut her off. Coming to a stop, Hirabayashi looked around, then grabbed the rail and flung herself over it, running up the staircase. One of the girls grabbed her leg but she kicked it off. Scrambling for purchase and adrenaline pumping through her veins, the teenage girl ran as fast as her legs could carry her.

There were shouts echoing behind her and she didn't dare stop to see the distance. Cutting around another corner she could see an open window and a section of rooms that nobody had lived in. Just as her hand reached for a knob, something struck the wood of the door. Yelping in surprise, her eyes focused on the sharp dart that had impaled itself in the wood.

"Were not letting you get away! We wanna know if what we saw is true! HIRABAYASHI MIZUKI THERE'S NOWHERE TO RUN!"

Said girl frantically looked around, praying to find an escape route. It was literally a dead end hallway on the fifth floor. And the other girls were blocking the only sensible way out. Mizuki had heard what they had planned on doing to her and she was not going to stay to let it happen.

So taking a deep breath, her pink eyes focused on the open window ahead of her. With a few powerful strides, her feet landed on the sill before pushing off, propelling her body outwards into the open space. There were loud shouts all around, some angry and others scared for her life. Mizuki had squeezed her eyes shut at the sudden sunlight, feeling the hard wind rip at her hair and clothes.

From below, a masculine voice rang out louder than the rest.

"MIZUKI-SENPAI!"

At the last second her eyes shot open wide, somehow snapping down to meet wide teal ones behind rectangle frames.

'Yukio-kun?'

The wind stopped as her body collided hard with something on the ground, the air and her consciousness being knocked clean out of her.

...5 minutes earlier...

"And that wraps up my lesson for today. Hope you guys do the homework I assigned. Have a good day everyone."

Yukio packed up his folders and tucked them under his arm, leaving the classroom and the Cram School altogether. It was a cloudless day, the bright blue sky shining beautifully.

As the teen smiled softly at the sky, his ears couldn't help but pick up shouting in the distance. Curious to see what the ruckus was about, he made his way in the direction of the girl's dorms. It was a bit odd to see so many females around the building instead of inside it.

Just as he was about to turn away, something black and white sprang from a window on the fifth floor. 'Is that trash? Why don't they use a trash can? No wait...it's-' "MIZUKI-SENPAI!"

Her eyes snapped open and met his seconds before her body collided with one of the many metal trash cans lining the school grounds. Together, they tumbled and skid along the cobblestone, finally stopped two meters away.

Throwing down the folder, the exorcist hurriedly ran over to the girl, staring at the large gash on her stomach and her head oozing crimson. Other girls swarmed around him, some shrieking at the sight while some fainted immediately.

Yukio couldn't really care at the moment. Scooping up the limp body he rushed to the nearest infirmary he knew of which happened to be back at the cram school.

**(A/N): Don't really know what to say. I mean I hope people like it - kinda doesn't seem like it but maybe because there's not a lot of people in the AnE fandom. Meh whatevs. Here's the seven****th real chapter. Thanks for reading.**

**~SecretBlackMagic~ has signed out**


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight: Just The Way It Goes**

Yukio looked down at her stomach, trying to figure out how in the world could he fix this without having to fully remove her shirt. Biting his lip harshly he brought the surgical scissors to the cloth and clipped it away, praying Mizuki wouldn't be upset when she awakened.

Ignoring the fact that he was staring down at her near topless form, the teen doctor set out on disinfecting the wound and tying a bandage around her midsection. In all honesty he marveled at her toned stomach. For a knight she was pretty in shape. A strong miniature six pack was set in place, making him feel a bit inferior at his faint four pack.

Shrugging it off he went to go check her head, parting her hair so he could tend to the injury. After wrapping the gauze around her skull and discarding everything else, Yukio set back out to the courtyard, going back for the papers he had dropped. Surprisingly enough, the third year president was sitting on a bench waiting for him, papers in lap. As he came closer she stood up, gazing at his form with sharp orange eyes.

A hum of approval rumbled in her throat, "You must be Yukio Okumura. Didn't know you were an exorcist as well. Here are your papers."

He took them and gave a small nod, "Thank you Mrs. Evans. I appreciate you collecting and keeping my paperwork."

Riley made a humored sound in her throat, slightly smirking, "Hmm. It's nothing. Take care of Uki for me. Lord knows Kotaru didn't. Ugh."

At that, he frowned and stepped forward a bit to stop her, "What do you mean?"

She merely blinked up at him with wide eyes, "Are you serious? You don't know anything? Anything at all?"

At the shake of his head and confused look, a tired sigh escaped her lips. Running a hand through her short brown hair, Riley put the other on her hip, "Mizuki and Kotaru are super close. Those two seemed to really be joined at the hip when they were younger apparently. I don't really know I merely came here from America only a year ago. But it seems that Kotaru decided to make things...more permanent between them."

Yukio's eyebrows furrowed, "By more permanent you mean...?"

Riley pouted, walking over to a recycle can, "I know one of those things are in here somewhere." After a bit of digging she pulled out a magazine and thrust it up for him to see, "See this? It's a picture of last Monday night. Kotaru held a ball for Mizuki to celebrate the arranged marriage he set up without her consent."

She flipped to the center of the book, holding it for him to look at again, "There's an entire six page article full of pictures and the party. Even everyone who was there's comments."

A cold, sinking feeling filled the male exorcist's body, making his face clench tight. Gripping the magazine in his free hand, his teal eyes scanned the pages, lingering on the photos of Kotaru and Mizuki kissing and dancing. It made him feel sick, so utterly and completely sick.

Riley sensed his disgusted and torn emotions, gently taking the magazine back to speak gently, "I'm sorry I was the one to tell you Yukio. But you were bound to find out sooner or later."

Forcing a neutral expression, he swallowed hard and cleared his throat, "So the commotion earlier was because those girls didn't like that those two are together?"

She nodded and glared at the ground, crossing her arms under her bust, "Yeah and it pisses me right off. I'd kick every last one of their asses if it didn't mean I'd lose my spot as president. Man this just gets my blood burning. But I think this bullying thing is getting too extreme. I hope it stops soon."

Yukio looked down at his shoes, softly mumbling and turning around, "Yes...me too. Excuse me Riley. I must go check on Mizuki-senpai."

With quick steps, the tall boy was back into the cram school infirmary, slamming down his paperwork on the nearby table. Barely concealing his rage, his hand grabbed at her left one, wrenching around until his eyes landed on it: the pink diamond ring on her ring finger.

Reeling away from the ring, Yukio dropped to the chair beside the bed, covering his face with both hands. Usually he was cool calm and collected but...something inside of him couldn't properly cover this up. It was...a complete shocker. Sure he had only been reunited with Mizuki for three weeks but back when they were younger...Yukio actually had a crush on her.

Even though studies came first, a small piece of him would always wonder what she was up to. Or how he could impress her even a little bit. He would feel a bit happy when it was her that picked on him because she was directly speaking with him, though the words made him cringe and want to cry. Mizuki had nice moments back then too. She had actually given him a small chain that had mini wooden cat head on it.

Of course he didn't wear it because it was too small now but deep in the inner pocket of his exorcist jacket was it's new home, safe from harm. She had probably forgotten about the cheap thing as easy as he had forgotten about her. Yet...there was still hope. Hope that was only hanging on by a mere thread now that she fully belonged to Kotaru.

Kotaru...that name came up a few times back in their page days. Junko and Rukia mentioned him a few times. The pretty boy had even showed up to get Mizuki from school once or twice. Yukio could only look through his father's legs as the two kids walked off hand in hand. A burning feeling filled his chest, yes even back then there was jealousy.

"Nngh...Ouch."

Snapping his head up, Yukio stared at Mizuki's face, watching it scrunch up before relaxing. Her eyelids slowly pulled back, revealing pink orbs to the world again. He felt himself swoon a bit, since he was already falling hard for her, he might as well do it with a bang. After a moment, she began to sit up on her elbows, seemingly careful of the wounds.

One hand flew to her chest, eyes going wide, "Where's my shirt? Ah. Yukio-kun...um...did you put my shirt somewhere?"

The same calm expression molded his features and he gave a soft smile in her direction, "Im sorry but it was ripped up. So I cut it off. Do you want my jacket until then?"

Quite honestly the man inside of him wished he was a pervert so he could openly ogle her chest which seemed to slightly overflow the cup of her bra. Shura was bigger but hers were a nice healthy size for her body type. If Rin or Shima were here they could probably guesstimate the size. Yet again if those two were here, Yukio would have to blind them both until she was covered.

"Yukio-kun? Did you hear me? You seemed to have spaced out while staring at me."

He mentally cursed himself and looked downward, "I apologize. This isn't like me."

He heard her chuckle then hiss, "Ouch. Ohh that's really going to hurt tomorrow in gym."

Mizuki sat upright and swung her legs over the side, her feet lightly landing on the ground. A sigh escaped her lips, "I should've been able to make it without a scratch. What happened this time?"

That seemed to make the boy's mind click, looking up at her sternly, "Why did you jump anyways? That wasn't very safe."

A somber smile crossed her features, "I was running away from those girls, silly Yukio. I think you would already hear or notice the rudeness by now. Today they were going to cut my hair off and give me a tattoo that said 'Plain Jane'. I think this is really sad."

For some reason, Yukio rose to his feet in anger, slamming his hands down on either side of her hips and leaning close. She looked up into his eyes a bit scared but he scowled, something he really only did with Rin, "Why didn't you get help sooner? You could've told a teacher or the principal. This isn't right and you shouldn't be subjected to this because of him."

Mizuki looked away, eyes getting glossy and voice incredibly soft, "I can't. I just can't."

He growled, letting the emotions run free, "What is he to you that you'd take getting bullied for?! He's doesn't love you like I-"

Yukio stopped himself. He nearly said,' He doesn't love you like I do.' That wasn't a complete lie nor was it the complete truth. Taking a deep breath he continued more calmly, "I'm sorry for yelling at you Mizuki-senpai. I don't know why but I can get very worked up about you just like I do for Rin. Though, tell me. What is he really to you? Please let me know."

He stared at her as she twiddled her thumbs, trying to find the right words, "Kotaru...he was the first friend I ever had. My best friend. He made sure to take care of me and treat me good enough. But also, Kotaru can be a very pushy and mean person. I don't know if it's in his blood to be snobby sometimes but it happens. For years I've only known of him actually being my friend despite how it seems. He told me two years after meeting me that he had fallen in love with me. Ever since then all the flirting became a regular thing. It's just the way it is."

Mizuki took a deep breath and looked Yukio's in the eyes, "I guess he should be my ideal love interest. But...I also have my heart set on someone else."

They stared at each other for a moment, the tenseness of the room fading away to a mere warmth between them. Suddenly loud music began to play. 'I live for the night~ I live for the lights~ I love for the hi~gh til my free falling.'

With a sheepish smile, the black haired girl reached into her skirt pocket and pulled out her phone. Pressing answer she held it up to her ear, "Mizuki here. How can I help you?"

As she listened, the faint smile gradually disappeared. Her eyebrows furrowed, lips forming into a hard line as her eyes turned glossy and darted around the floor. Yukio watched as she took a deep breath and swallowed, forcing a tight smile, "Sorry, I'm still here. Thanks for calling to tell me Riley. I appreciate it...No I'm fine. It's okay...Yes really. I'm sure this will blow over soon so I can't get upset yet. I have a reputation to uphold. Goodbye Miss Evans."

With a click, the phone call was ended. The girl instantly dropped the phone on the bed beside her, staring up at the ceiling as she regained her composure and willed away the tears. Yukio felt a bit itchy. He didn't quite know how to comfort her seeing as how he himself had just yelled at her. Now something else bad had happened, "Mizuki-senpai? Are you alright?"

After a while she turned back to look at him, eyes still watery and dangerously close to spilling over. It actually made the brunette feel as though he was failing miserably, especially hearing how chocked up she was with sadness, "I-I...I'm okay. Rea...Really. It's just my clothes I mean - sob- I didn't like them anyway. So...-sniffle- it's okay that they ripped up my stuff and burned it."

His teal eyes went wide. Was Kotaru's fangirls so crazy that they'd actually go far enough as to destroy all of Mizuki's clothing? What about her possessions? Those questions were soon forgotten as he stood up and moved to her side, taking off his coat and wrapping it around her. A hiccup left her mouth along with a muffled sob.

After a few moments she took another deep breath and wiped away the few traces of moisture. A calm mask was in place, "Sorry you saw me break character for a moment Yukio-kun. I shouldn't have let you see me begin to cry. I'm not supposed to cry. At least not in front of anyone."

He gazed down at her, then pulled her into his arms for a tight hug. Resting his head on her shoulder he muttered, "I don't mind. You can cry as much as you want. Pretend like nobody is here. I'm not here."

Her hands clutched onto his back and a silent sob shook her shoulders but no tears leaked out. Almost as if they weren't allowed to anymore. Mizuki pulled away from him, pink eyes looking more red, "Sorry but I really can't allow myself that. No matter how much I want to I can't break down. Not right here. I've worked too hard to be strong."

Yukio narrowed his eyes a bit and gently carressed her cheek, "It's not about how much you can take before you break. Strength is about how much you can take even after you've been broken."

For some reason, a gentle smile lifted her lips, "You know life isn't fair. This is just the way things go. So I'll accept these hardships. But...Yukio-kun may I borrow a shirt?"

A blush spread across both their faces as they turned away from each other. This entire time Mizuki had still been sitting in only her bra, now having his jacket draped across her shoulders. Yukio was used to seeing Shura like that and it didn't bother him since he didn't like her that way. But it was different with the pink eyed girl. Way different.

Taking off his school jacket and vest, he handed it over to her and she immediately slipped it on, "Thank you. Yukio-kun...um...please don't tell anyone."

He chuckled softly, "I promise. This will stay between only us."

She suddenly sat straight, "I just remembered I had to go to a short mission today before I jumped out the window. Gah I can feel Shura's anger."

As the girl hung her head in shame, Yukio set a hand on her shoulder, "She'd understand. Plus you can't fight with those injuries."

A sigh escaped her lips, this probably really isn't anything. Just looks worse that what it is."

The dull throb of pain was still there and Mizuki felt oddly...renewed. The ever present caution was gone and she felt a bit...adventurous. With a small smile, her phone was picked up, fingers dialing a familiar number. After the second ring it was answered, "_WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU?! IM DONE NOW!"_

Mizuki chuckled despite how she'd usually wince, "Sorry Shu-Shu but I got hurt. I'll be coming over today to spend the night too. Shut up, I'll bring you beer. See ya."

When the call ended, the black haired girl stood, raising her arms high over her head to stretch provactively. Of course the guy in front of her moved away, turning his head. Giving a relieved sigh and smile, she put her hands on her hips, "Thanks for bandaging me up. Oh. Don't you have some work to do?"

He nodded and picked up his papers, pushing the glasses further up his nose, "It isn't as much today. So it won't take long."

His body stiffened as he felt fingers lightly trace his jawline, teal eyes flickering down to meet pink. Mizuki was smirking, other hand reaching over to trace his bare arm. Yukio didn't want to admit it but the prickly feeling was exhilarating, "Yukio-kun why don't you join me for a bit? I can help you ease the stress..."

A shiver went down his spine as her warm breath fanned over his skin, fainting smelling of sweet candy. Suddenly he cleared his throat, pulling away, "Sorry but I've got to finish this then my own homework."

A pout turned her plump lips downwards, a sudden urge to kiss them surging through his veins, "You shouldn't work all the time. It'll wear your young body down. So as your higher up I order you to come relax with me. Alright?"

With a sigh of defeat, Yukio made his way to the door, "At least let me drop off my paperwork. I'll meet you at the water fountain."

~ 30 minutes later ~

Yukio gaped at the scene before him.

There stood Shura and Mizuki actually giggling and talking like sisters or best friends over a boy magazine. Of course Shura was buzzed but Mizuki didn't mind. The three of them were all sitting in her livingroom, TV on but Yukio being the only one paying attention to it.

He hardly ever watched tv since it was pointless but there seemed to be an educational marathon about history on. The nerd inside of him was seriously interested...until Shura switched it to a game show. Whipping around so fiercely his glasses almost flew off, the brunette frowned, "I was watching that."

The red head rolled her eyes, "Yeah yeah whatever. Anyways me and Mizu Mizu here found out there's a festival tonight to honor a new year for all the academy students. Wanna go?"

Mizuki smiled and leaned in, "Pleeeeeease? Relaxation remember?"

Looking between their faces, he turned his face downwards, rubbing at the moles on his face in defeat, "Fine."

**(A/N): Tried to spice things up a bit. Don't know if it worked yet. Thanks for reading! **

**~SecretBlackMagic~ had signed out **


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